FDA Warns of Rare Vision Loss Risk Linked to Ozempic, Wegovy and Other GLP-1 Drugs

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Monday that it is strengthening safety warnings for certain medications used to treat diabetes and obesity. Manufacturers will be required to update the labels of GLP-1 medications, including Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound, to warn of a slightly increased but rare risk of a serious eye condition that can cause sudden and sometimes irreversible vision loss.

The warning focuses on non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a condition caused by reduced blood flow to the optic nerve. It typically causes sudden, painless blurred vision or vision loss in one eye. Known risk factors include smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, and kidney disease.

The FDA's decision follows a safety review initiated after the publication of a study in July 2024. As part of the review, regulators reexamined 126 clinical trials, which indicated a modest increase in risk among patients taking the medications. The findings showed 6.4 cases per 100,000 treatment-years among medication users, compared with 3.8 cases in the placebo group.

Health Experts Warn Against Stopping Treatment Without Medical Guidance

Despite the findings, the FDA emphasized that patients should generally continue their prescribed treatment while remaining alert to unusual visual symptoms, including tunnel vision, blind spots, changes in color perception, and sudden blurring. If such symptoms occur, the agency recommends temporarily discontinuing the medication and seeking prompt evaluation by an ophthalmologist.

Health professionals in Israel are also urging patients not to discontinue treatment without medical supervision. The Association of Diabetes Specialist Nurses warned that "stopping treatment without supervision poses an immediate health risk."

The association emphasized that these medications help reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, and serious diabetes-related complications, and that the dangers of stopping treatment without medical guidance outweigh the rare risk identified in the review. Patients with concerns were encouraged to consult their healthcare team or a diabetes specialist nurse, while anyone experiencing sudden changes in vision was urged to seek immediate evaluation by an eye specialist.