(Dennis Thompson – HealthDay News) – The weight loss medications like Wegovy can improve the symptoms of patients with heart failure, shows a recent clinical trial. Both men and women showed improvement in heart function after one year on semaglutide, the active ingredient of Ozempic and Wegovythe researchers report.
Women tended to lose more weight than men, on average about 9.6% of their body weight compared to 7.2% for men. However, both sexes experienced similar improvements in their heart healththe researchers found.
This could mean the drug could have heart benefits beyond helping people lose weight.
The results shed light on “the consistent benefits of semaglutide for women and men”said the senior researcher, the Dr. Mikhail Kosiborodcardiologist Saint Luke’s Mid-America Heart Institute in Kansas City, Missouri.
For the clinical trial, researchers randomly assigned 1,145 people with heart failure to take semaglutide or a placebo for one year. The heart failure It occurs when the heart begins to pump less efficiently, slowing the delivery of oxygen-rich blood to the entire body.
This results in fatigue and shortness of breath, making everyday activities like walking or carrying groceries very difficult for some, according to the American Heart Association.
But people who took semaglutide experienced an improvement in both their heart failure as in the physical limitations imposed on them by the condition, as the trial results show. They also had lower blood pressure and a smaller waist circumference after one year on the drug.plus less inflammation, the researchers said.
The findings were published in the June 23 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and were presented simultaneously at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association in Orlando, Florida.
*The American Heart Association has more information about heart failure. SOURCE: American College of Cardiology, press release, June 23, 2024
*Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporters ©The New York Times 2024
