Serious Anesthesia Risks With Ozempic Medications
As the use of Ozempic® (semaglutide) and other glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists
becomes more widespread for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and weight management, the American
Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) has recently put forth recommendations to discontinue these
medications prior to elective surgeries involving sedation.
There has been a concerning increase in complications among patients taking these drugs, particularly
due to delayed gastric emptying, which raises the risk of pulmonary aspiration during sedation. Given
that standard fasting guidelines may not adequately reduce the risk of aspiration, the ASA advises
extending the fasting period to 8-12 hours and stopping these medications approximately one week prior
to the procedure.
Fujino E, Cobb KW, Schoenherr J, Gouker L, Lund E. Anesthesia Considerations for a Patient
on Semaglutide and Delayed Gastric Emptying. Cureus. 2023 Jul 19;15(7):e42153