Questão 60 - CESUPA Medicina 2025

READ THE TEXT BELOW, THEN ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

 

Ozempic for weight loss: Does it work, and what do experts recommend?

    About 42% of American adults are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For years, people have been trying all sorts of methods and medications in search of the perfect weight loss solution.

    A new trend has been getting a lot of attention: people using the diabetes drug Ozempic for weight loss. Ozempic, known generically as semaglutide, was approved in 2017 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in adults with type 2 diabetes. It is a weekly injection that helps lower blood sugar by helping the pancreas make more insulin.

    Despite its true purpose, some physicians prescribe it to be used for weight loss. It works by mimicking a naturally occurring hormone. As those hormone levels rise, the molecules go to your brain, telling it you're full. It also slows digestion by increasing the time it takes for food to leave the body. This is similar to the effect of bariatric surgery. When using Ozempic to treat diabetes, weight loss is a common side effect. It is designed to be taken long-term.

    Semaglutide, however, is approved for weight loss under the name Wegovy, since Ozempic has a smaller dose of semaglutide than Wegovy. Research has shown that if you stop taking Ozempic (or Wegovy), it’s likely that you will gain back the weight you lost. When people use Ozempic off-label for weight loss, type 2 diabetes patients who rely on Ozempic may struggle to find this medication.

(Excerpt taken from: https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/ozempic-for-weight-loss-does-it-work-and-what-do-experts-recommend/2023/07)

 

Glossary:

Sorts: tipos

Weight loss: perda de peso

Trend: tendência

Rise: aumenta

Likely: provável

Off-label: sem prescrição

Rely: depende

Struggle: ter dificuldade

The passage mentions a potential problem with the off-label use of Ozempic for weight loss. What is this concern?