News item | 05-04-2023 | 11:00 am
Last month, we warned of a global shortage of diabetes drug Ozempic. Due to a rapidly increasing demand, the manufacturer cannot keep up with production. Annoying for patients, because switching to another medicine entails risks.
Last week I was a guest on Radio 1 for an interview about this shortage. In the broadcast I spoke to a patient with diabetes (diabetes), who uses Ozempic and suffered from the shortage. He was given another drug, but that didn’t seem to work well, he said. That’s probably because it takes time to get “set” back on this other drug. That makes it so difficult to switch.
Of an estimated 1 million diabetes patients in the Netherlands (in 2021), approximately 40,000 people used Ozempic. The number of users has risen sharply every year since approval in the Netherlands in 2018, without any shortages. Since 2022, there are suddenly shortages worldwide. How is that possible?
Of course we never know for sure. We do see many stories on social media about losing weight with Ozempic. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk talk about it. I do not know whether, and if so, to what extent this plays a role in the shortage. But promoting a diabetes medication as a weight-loss drug is unwise anyway.
Ozempic is a medication that (along with diet and exercise) is intended to treat diabetes. Using this drug alone for weight loss has several drawbacks. The leaflet and dosages are about diabetes. Physician supervision is required. Also to track possible side effects. So it’s not innocent. You should get it when you really need it. And what it is for.
I also hear that there are people who order the drug over the internet. I don’t think that’s a good idea in this case. After all, no doctor is involved in the treatment.
The fact that people use the drug without a doctor and the worldwide shortage, which creates an unpleasant situation for people with diabetes. They may now run out of their medicine. Or they have to switch to another brand. With all its consequences. They should monitor their blood sugar more closely and consult their doctor more often about adjusting it. And there is also a chance of other side effects.
Where is the solution? I would like people to use this drug under the supervision of a doctor or pharmacist who can monitor the dose, side effects and sugar levels. And above all: that it remains available for whom it is intended, namely people with diabetes.
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Over de column
Chairman em. Prof. Dr. Ton de Boer writes a column ‘On medicines’ every month, about health and well-being. The column also appears on Gezondheid&Co, the health platform for the Northern Netherlands, of the Noordelijke Dagblad Combinatie (the NDC Mediagroep). The columns focus on current affairs and our role and work as a Dutch medicine authority.
