Semaglutide (Novo Nordisk)

London: People with type 1 diabetes who need to lose weight can benefit from the blockbuster GLP-1 drug semaglutide currently approved only for type 2 diabetes, according to results from a small trial. Semaglutide is the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk 's diabetes drugs Ozempic and Rybelsus, as well as its weight-loss treatment Wegovy. In the first clinical trial testing the Novo drug in people with type 1 diabetes and obesity, the 36 patients who received weekly semaglutide injections along with their usual insulin spent more time in their target blood sugar range and lost more weight than 36 similar patients who got a placebo along with their insulin, study leader Dr. Viral Shah of Indiana University School of Medicine reported at the American Diabetes Association meeting in Chicago. All of the patients were using automated insulin delivery systems and had a body mass index of 30 or higher, which is considered obese. One-third of the patients in the semaglutide group achieved all three of the study's goals: blood sugar in the target range of 70 to 180 mg/dL more than 70% of the time, dangerously low blood sugar less than 4% of the time, and body weight reduction of at least 5%. The average weight loss with semaglutide was 20 pounds (9 kg). No one in the placebo group achieved all three of these milestones, according to a report of the study published in NEJM Evidence. "We hope that our trial will encourage the industry to conduct a regulatory approval trial so that this drug could be available as an adjunct to insulin therapy to optimize type 1 diabetes management," Shah said in a statement. FASTING BEFORE SURGERY MAY BE POINTLESS The decades-old practice of having patients fast before surgery might not do what it's supposed to do, a new analysis suggests. Surgeons have patients stop eating hours before an operation in order to avoid so-called aspiration pneumonia, which happens when anesthesia causes vomiting and the vomit contents are inhaled into the lungs. The belief is that an empty stomach would lower that risk. For the analysis, researchers pooled data from 17 studies involving 990 patients who fasted before surgery and 801 who did not. Aspiration occurred in 0.5% of non-fasting patients and 0.7% of those who fasted, the researchers reported in Surgery. No particular fasting regimen was better than the others at preventing aspiration, the researchers found. "At some point, almost everybody will undergo a procedure and there are universal policies in every healthcare facility that require some degree of fasting before surgery," study leader Dr. Edward Livingston of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA said in a statement. "Fasting for long periods of time is extremely uncomfortable and patients really don't like to do it. Our research suggests that long periods of fasting may not be necessary." (To receive the full newsletter in your inbox for free sign up here) (Reporting by Nancy Lapid; editing by Bill Berkrot)

New Delhi: US pharmaceutical major Eli Lilly on Thursday announced its plan to launch blockbuster diabetes drug Mounjaro ( tirzepatide ) in KwikPen , a prefilled pen designed for once-a-week administration for single patients in the Indian market, two days after its rival Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk launched the weight loss drug Wegovy as a weekly injection in the country, intensifying competition in the booming obesity market. Eli Lilly said it received the approval of the Indian drug regulatory authority but did not comment on the launch timeline. The expected price of the pen device was also not disclosed. Once launched, the company said each pen will deliver four fixed doses of 0.6 ml and has been approved in six dose strengths including 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 7.5 mg, 10 mg, 12.5 mg, and 15 mg. Wegovy, launched earlier this week, is expected to be in the pharmacies by the end of this month. The delivery device will contain four doses of 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg and 1 mg priced at '17,345 a month. This translates into a weekly cost of '4,366. The 1.7 mg dose will be priced at '24,280 per month, and 2.4 mg dose will be priced at '26,015. Anoop Misra, chairman of Fortis C-DOC, Centre of Excellence for diabetes, metabolic diseases and endocrinology said Mounjaro's dual mechanism may offer superior efficacy, however "wider adoption" will depend on the "price" of the device. Winselow Tucker, president and general manager of Eli Lilly India, said the approval of Mounjaro KwikPen marks a step forward in the care of people living with type 2 diabetes and obesity, offering a convenient way for patients to take their medication. Mounjaro reduces body weight and decreases fat mass by regulating appetite. "With this approval, all six dosage options for Mounjaro will soon be available in India, supporting a more personalised approach to treatment and allowing healthcare professionals to tailor care based on individual patient needs and clinical goals," he said. Mounjaro is the first and only dual GIP (glucose- dependent insulinotropic polypeptide) and GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1) receptor agonist, indicated as an adjunct to diet and exercise for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes and chronic weight management in adults with obesity or overweight, with one weight-related comorbidity. By Teena Thacker ,