While popular weight loss drugs, Ozempic and Mounjaro, have been the talk of the town, experts are now talking about a scary new side effect of vision loss related to these two medications.
New studies are reporting sudden and sometimes permanent blindness in those patients who use semaglutide and tirzepatide, the active ingredient contained in these drugs.
Ozempic Blindness is Possible
A recent report chronicled nine shocking cases of US patients who went blind after receiving these medications. One of the patients was a woman who, after just one dose of semaglutide, lost all vision in her left eye.
Two months later, she had to go back on the drug for diabetes and woke up a couple of weeks later blind in her right eye.
Another woman who had been using semaglutide for a year noticed a painless shadow over her left eye one morning. Medical testing revealed severe blood vessel damage in her retina, leading to irreversible blindness.
A male patient had been on tirzepatide for one year when he developed internal bleeding in his eye. Doctors told him that with currently available evidence, drugs for weight loss could not cause the damage to his eye.
Read more: Study Reveals Two-Year Adherence Rates for Ozempic: What's With Drake's BBL Drizzy Controversy?
How Do Weight-Loss Drugs Cause Blindness?
While the exact cause remains uncertain, researchers suspect that Ozempic and similar medications may trigger vision problems by rapidly lowering blood sugar levels. As Daily Mail reports, the sudden drop could damage blood vessels in the eyes, leading to inflammation, blocked blood flow, and, ultimately, blindness.
According to a report published in JAMA Ophthalmology, the rapid changes in blood sugar may temporarily weaken eye vessels, increasing the risk of vision impairment.
Medical Experts Warned Patients About Vision Problems
The American Academy of Ophthalmology has also responded to the alarming trend. It recently issued a statement warning patients who experience any vision problems to stop taking semaglutide and seek immediate medical attention.
Still, the academy hasn't banned its use completely. Rather, it urges patients and physicians to follow carefully any potential side effects that might arise from such injections.
Should You Halt Ozempic?
Well, for the ones who have Ozempic, Mounjaro, or similar medicines, this piece of news must worry them more. These medications, though applauded for their performance in weight loss and diabetes, surely cannot afford the risk of causing blindness.
If you're taking semaglutide or tirzepatide and are experiencing visual disturbances, including blurred vision, shadows, or pain, then immediate medical attention is required. Consult a doctor regarding your risk before continuing or discontinuing its use.
Last year, Ozempic and Wegovy were also linked to non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a rare condition affecting only 10 out of 100,000 people.
It's important to note that NAION has a likelihood of developing four times more on diabetic patients consuming semaglutid. But if you're an obese or overweight person, the risk is higher at over seven times.
