Study Says Novo Nordisk's Ozempic Reduces Kidney Disease Risks

(RTTNews) - Novo Nordisk (NVO)-manufactured weight loss drug Ozempic significantly reduces the risk of kidney complications and major cardiovascular events, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The research, funded by Novo Nordisk in 2019, recruited around 3,500 patients with Type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease across 28 countries to receive an injection of Ozempic or a placebo.

During the follow-ups, the researchers noted that the members of semaglutide group, a main ingredient of Ozempic, had 24 percent lower risk of suffering from kidney disease than the placebo group.

"Semaglutide reduced the risk of clinically important kidney outcomes and death from cardiovascular causes in patients with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease," the researchers concluded.

"In this trial, we're able to show benefits that highlight how transforming semaglutide can be for people with diabetes and kidney disease," said Dr. Vlado Perkovic, a nephrologist and the lead author of the study.

"The effect size was a bit larger than we had expected, and therefore, the results were highly statistically significant. So the likelihood of this being a chance finding is infinitesimally small, and I think we can be highly confident that the results are robust and real," Perkovic added.

Similarly, Mounjaro by Eli Lilly (LLY) and two other medications are being under study to treat people with diabetic kidney disease.