March 30, (Reuters) The moment that the latest obesity-related drugs that are incredibly effective are introduced to into the U.S. market, medical organizations are eager to provide advice to the members of their organization on how they can the best utilize them for patients. This is where the discussion gets underway.
A few experts recommend the widespread recourse to drugs such as Novo Nordisk’s (NOVOb.CO) Wegovy, alongside exercising and eating a healthy diet. Some recommend that they be used in the first instance for high-risk patients who have different conditions that are made worse due to the weight gain.
There are some who are contemplating additional, more specific patient-specific tests for determining the optimal option in accordance with the Reuters study of the current guidelines as well as interviews with physicians and senior executives from six medical associations who are considering changing their guidelines.
Their suggestions will impact the treatment and coverage of nearly 11 millions U.S. adults and children overweight and an important portion of obese Americans with other medical risks, like heart disease and diabetes.
U.S. health insurance companies consider special medical guidelines as well as other factors for deciding whether or not they will cover the cost of a procedure. Wegovy, which is priced at $1,350 per month, is not yet received a wide-ranging insurance coverage through private health plans.
Wegovy has been approved to be used in the United States and Europe, and a drug similar to Eli Lilly and Co (LLY.N) is known as Mounjaro will likely to be granted U.S. approval later this year.
The drugs helped patients lose as much as 15 percent and 20% of their body weight, respectively through large-scale clinical trials. This is higher than the previously approved weight loss treatments.
The clinical trials took two years. Therefore, potential long-term results aren’t currently known. Many people may require to stay in the treatment to stay away from the excess weight.
“These novel substances are game-changing and there’s no doubt of that,” said Anthony Comuzzie the chief executive officer of The Obesity Society. “But the issue of obesity isn’t a simple problem.”
The society, with members that include several of the most prominent U.S. obesity researchers and doctors, has formed an expert group to suggest how to introduce patients to the drugs, and also how to incorporate it in other forms of treatment according to Comuzzie. Reuters.
The organization last issued the obesity treatment guidelines in 2013, alongside other organizations like the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology. It plans to announce fresh recommendations in the coming year and plan to provide regular updates when data become readily available.
“You could consider using any of these new medications for the first time to get the treatment but then proceed onto other treatments in order to continue the progress made,” Comuzzie said.
The American Association of Clinical Endocrinology (AACE) stated that they plan to issue new guidelines regarding diagnosis, stage and treatment of medically induced overweight in the first quarter of 2024, the last time it issued guidelines was in 2016.
The Endocrine Society plans an update of its weight loss drug guidelines to be released in summer 2025. ten years after the last time it published the guidelines.
Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly Eli Lilly, who contribute some money towards The Obesity Society and the Endocrine Society and partner with AACE They would not comment on whether they are working with medical associations in the development of new guidelines.
Obesity as a MEDICAL DISORDERS
The American Medical Association, the biggest medical association in the United States acknowledged obesity as a condition in the year 2013. The treatment falls within a variety of medical specialties that include specialists in obesity, endocrinologists gastroenterologists, and pediatricians and doctors who treat primary care.
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In interviews, more than fifty obesity experts differed on the best way to utilize Wegovy as well as similar treatment.
One of them suggested she could suggest the drug at the first appointment, if they’d tried at least three months of diet and fitness prior to the visit and another one wanted to make lifestyle changes for at least six months prior to turning into drugs.
However, some see the latest drugs as real breakthroughs like the launch of statins that are now utilized to reduce cholesterol levels and to prevent heart attacks.
“No one cares about the use of such drugs,” said Dr. Caroline Apovian, co-director of Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Center for Weight Management who was the co-author of the earlier guidance issued by the Obesity Society and Endocrine Society.
“In reality, many are declaring that statins ought to be taken by everyone as you’d like to keep your cholesterol (bad cholesterol) lower as much as is possible.”
Some some patients may view the medications as an easy fix to ignore the changes in behavior that are needed over the longer term.
“The the first and most effective method for weight loss is to modify your diet and lifestyle,” said Dr. Prakash Deedwania, a cardiologist and professor at the University of California, San Francisco.
The Obesity Society wants to establish an agreement among U.S. experts with its updated guidelines and plans to work with several medical associations which include those of the U.S.-based Endocrine Society and Obesity Canada.
Wegovy is ineligible to receive insurance as part of the national Medicare health insurance plan that covers older Americans. Drug companies are pushing Congress to amend an existing law which defines weight loss medications as lifestyle treatments which do not need federal reimbursement.
Common side effects of Wegovy include nausea, abdominal pain, and vomiting.
“One of the greatest challenges with obesity is that there are a lot of possibilities that patients can explore,” said Dr. Jamy Ard who is an obesity researcher who works at Wake Forest University heading the Obesity Society’s Guidance Project “and the scientific evidence for many of them is weak and at best.”
(This report has been updated to make sure that the doctor’s affiliation is in paragraph 20 to Brigham and Women’s Hospital, not Harvard Medical School, in the 20th paragraph)
Reporting done by Patrick Wingrove; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Bill Berkrot
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