FDA Issues Vision Loss Warning for GLP-1 Weight Loss and Diabetes Drugs

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has asked manufacturers to update safety labels, stating that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) weight loss and diabetes drugs may be linked to a rare eye condition known as non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION).

According to the FDA announcement, NAION, which occurs due to reduced blood flow to the optic nerve, typically leads to sudden and painless vision loss in one eye, and there is no known treatment to restore lost vision. While recalling that this risk is already high in obesity and diabetes patients, the regulatory agency requested that potential risk information be included on the labels of all products with GLP-1 effects, including Novo Nordisk's Ozempic and Wegovy, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro and Zepbound, and Sanofi's Soliqua.

Drug manufacturer Novo Nordisk argued in a statement to ABC News that existing research does not prove GLP-1 drugs cause NAION. The initiation of this process by the FDA was influenced by a study published in JAMA Ophthalmology in 2024, which showed an increased risk in patients using semaglutide. As a result of the reviews conducted, an NAION case was detected in an average of 6.4 people per 100,000 using GLP-1 drugs over a one-year period, while this figure was recorded as 3.8 for those taking other diabetes medications or a placebo.