Ozempic, Wegovy reduces alcoholism symptoms, study shows

A team of researchers from the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University announced this week that they have published the first evidence that the drug semaglutide specifically reduces symptoms of alcohol use disorder.

Semaglutide made headlines as a drug approved by the FDA as a diabetes treatment under the name Ozempic and as a weight loss drug under the name Wegovy.

“This study represents an important step forward in understanding the potential therapeutic applications of semaglutide in the field of addiction medicine,” said Dr. Jesse Richards, assistant professor of medicine and director of obesity medicine at Osaka University School of Medicine.

The research team said larger controlled studies would be needed to verify and extend their initial findings. One such clinical trial is underway at his OSU Hardesty Center for Clinical Research and Neuroscience in Tulsa.

Richards said anecdotal evidence about semaglutide’s possible effects on alcohol use is mounting.

“That’s one of the big things that caused this issue. People volunteered to report this,” he said.

Richards recalled one of his patients drinking a case of beer in just a few hours at the lake. After starting to use semaglutide for weight loss, he lost all desire for beer and cut back on it.

“That was the first thing that really got me noticed,” Richards said.

It is also promising that lower doses of the drug are producing the reported results, officials said.

The research team published the first evidence on Monday In a paper in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. This paper reviews the outcomes of six patients who received semaglutide during weight loss treatment, demonstrating significant reductions in test scores identifying alcohol impairment.

Dr. Kyle Simmons, senior author of the paper and professor of pharmacology and physiology in the OSU Health Sciences Center, is conducting the current clinical trial in Tulsa.

The effort, called STAR (Semaglutide Therapy for Alcohol Reduction), is funded by the Hardesty Family Foundation and OSU-CHS.

“The publication of this case series sets the stage for future clinical trials, including the STAR study, which can definitively tell whether semaglutide is safe and effective for treating alcohol use disorder,” Simmons said. Ta.

A sister study is underway in Baltimore, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Richards said part of the research team’s motivation was what the study would mean for the state of Oklahoma. The state has some of the highest obesity, diabetes and alcohol consumption rates in the nation, hitting underserved and rural residents especially hard.

“One of the things that really drives us is how we can help improve the lives of so many Oklahomans who face multiple challenges,” Richards said. “This could allow primary care providers to better care for them.”

“This is a drug that addresses a problem that is unique to Oklahoma,” Simmons said. “Here is a single treatment that has the potential to address the long-term health impacts and impacts of a major public health problem that we are experiencing here in Oklahoma.”

However, Simmons cautioned that this new study should not prompt people to start seeking the drug as a treatment for alcohol disorders just yet.

“We don’t know if it’s safe and effective in well-validated trials,” he said. “Also, we now have FDA-approved treatments, and that’s what people should be focusing on right now.”

“It’s important to point that out because I’m worried that we’re going to run out of patients and put pressure on health care providers,” he added.

Researchers praise the spirit of teamwork that this effort represents and hope it continues in the future.

“This is an example of what happens when two R-1 research institutions in Oklahoma work together,” Simmons said.