They have been touted as an antidote to America’s obesity crisis, but weight-loss drugs like Ozempic remain more expensive and less effective than good old surgery.
The injections were found to cost twice as much and lead to about four percent less weight loss compared to an operation that has been performed for years.
Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston found that weight-loss drugs containing semaglutide cost more than $53,000 over five years, compared with a “stomach spot” that costs less than $20,000.
The operation, in which part of the stomach is sutured to make it smaller, was also found to be more effective in maintaining the greatest weight loss after five years: the people’s BMI after the weight loss surgery was 31. 7 compared to 33.0.
Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston found that weight-loss drugs containing semaglutide cost more than $53,000 over five years, compared with a “stomach stitch” surgery that costs less than $20,000.
Researchers said the price of Ozempic and similar drugs would have to be reduced three-fold, from $13,618 to $3,591, to make it the preferred option.
Semaglutide has become popular due to its non-invasive nature, its ease of use as a weekly injection and its short-term effectiveness, the researchers said.
An endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG), on the other hand, is a one-time procedure that can be repeated a few years later, if the stomach has stretched or the stitches have become loose.
ESG is a minimally invasive weight loss procedure that reduces the size of the stomach without requiring an incision through the skin.
Television personality Stacey Silva underwent the procedure and reality star Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson will also undergo the surgery.
The study compared ESG with semaglutide to treat patients with class two obesity, meaning they had a BMI of 35 to 39.9 over five years.
The base case they looked at was a 45-year-old patient with a BMI of 37. They then used publicly available data from clinical trials to simulate other hypothetical patients.
The researchers simulated two treatment strategies (semaglutide and ESG) versus no treatment.
An ESG is performed using a flexible tube passed through the throat with a camera attached and then a surgeon closes a part of the stomach with stitches.
This reduces the size, which restricts the amount someone can eat.
The model incorporated the costs of ESG, repeat ESG, and the costs of treating potential adverse events after surgery, which could be temporary stomach pain, nausea, and vomiting.
As with any type of surgery, there are also very small risks of serious complications due to the operation itself. These may include bleeding, infection, and tears in the stomach.
TO meta-analysis of studies found that the rate of adverse effects ranged from 1.5 to 2.3 percent.
For Ozempic, the researchers calculated the monthly cost of semaglutide, which is around $1,000 a month.
An endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty typically costs between $7,000 and $9,000, according to Bagshahi Bariatric and General Surgery in Texas. Health insurance may cover part of the cost if the person is clinically obese.
Semaglutide is a once-weekly injection that works by delaying stomach emptying, making patients feel fuller for longer and decreasing overall appetite.
The injections can cause a variety of unpleasant side effects. Users often complain of nausea, vomiting, constipation and diarrhea.
In one study, about 15.8 percent of patients using Ozempic suffered from nausea, 7.3 percent from abdominal pain, and 8.5 percent from diarrhea.
In more severe cases, the drug has been shown to increase the risk of stomach paralysis, pancreatitis, and intestinal obstructions.
Patients must continue taking the medication for life and can regain any weight loss if they stop taking it.
The study was published in the journal JAMA Network.