Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) shares are down almost 4%, while Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE:LLY) has dropped more than 1% Wednesday after a report from the New York Post said there is a potential link between Ozempic and a serious eye condition.
The publication, citing a new study from Massachusetts Eye and Ear, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, said a link between semaglutide — the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy — and sudden vision loss had been uncovered.
They add that the study says the "risk of developing nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) is four times higher for diabetics on semaglutide and seven times higher for people taking the drug to lose weight."
They add that NAION and the purported relationship between semaglutide and the optic nerve disorder are not fully understood.
Researchers are said to have started an investigation late last summer when Mass Eye and Ear neuro-ophthalmologists saw three patients in their practice diagnosed with the disease in just one week, with all three taking semaglutide.
The researchers are said to have assessed the records of over 17,000 Mass Eye and Ear patients treated in the six years since the release of Ozempic and analyzed the rate of NAION diagnoses. They reportedly identified "significant risk increases with semaglutide."
The safety information for Ozempic's warns that vision changes may occur, while Wegovy's potential side effects include vision changes for people with Type 2 diabetes.