Weight Loss Drugs May Risk Complications under Anesthesia
2023-08-21
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1Doctors who practice anesthesiology in the United States and Canada are expressing concern about patients who take popular weight loss drugs leading up to surgery.
2Anesthesiologists work together with surgeons to make sure their patients are asleep, or sedated, before medical procedures.
3More and more people are taking the weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.
4Anesthesiologists say they are having trouble deciding when surgeries should take place.
5That is because the weight loss drugs cause people to hold food in their stomachs longer than usual.
6People who still have food in their stomachs when they are put to sleep before surgery risk a complication known as a pulmonary aspiration.
7That is that is the term for when someone breathes some of their stomach contents into their lungs.
8In extreme cases, the food particles can cause infection or even death.
9Most patients are told to not eat for about eight hours before surgery.
10However, the doctors say those guidelines may need to be changed for patients who are using the weight loss drugs.
11Ion Hobai is an anesthesiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
12He said everyone who takes the drugs should know about "such a serious sort of potential complication."
13Komodo Health is a technology company that works in healthcare.
14According to its research, nearly 6 million prescriptions for the weight loss drugs were written in the first five months of 2023.
15In June, the American Society of Anesthesiologists said patients should not take daily weight loss medications on the day of surgery.
16It also advised that patients should not get their weekly weight loss injection for a week before any sedation procedures.
17Dr. Michael Champeau is the head of the organization.
18He said the recommendation is based on experiences from anesthesiologists around the United States.
19A group of anesthesiologists, including Hobai, said they would recommend even more time off from the drugs before surgery.
20In the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, they suggested about three weeks.
21Dr. Philip Jones is an anesthesiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.
22After three weeks, he said, the drug should no longer be affecting the stomach.
23At that point, he said, "everything should go back to normal."
24Hobai said he is finishing a study of 200 patients who were using drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy before surgery.
25He said his results are similar to a smaller study in Brazil that found 25 percent of patients still had food in their stomachs 10 days after stopping the drug.
26Because of this information, the American Society of Anesthesiologists said doctors who are unsure of their patients' stomach contents should work differently.
27They say doctors should work as they would if they knew the patient's stomach was full.
28Aspiration only happens one time out of every 2,000 to 3,000 operations that require sedation.
29But when it does happen, the patients develop a lung injury half the time. That is why the doctors are concerned.
30One of Hobai's patients who had been taking Wegovy developed a problem that required serious care.
31He had not eaten for 18 hours before surgery.
32In another case, a woman taking a small amount of Ozempic did not eat for 10 hours before surgery.
33She was in the middle of a procedure that had to be stopped because doctors saw food in her stomach.
34Dr. Elisa Lund is an anesthesiologist at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
35She said many doctors have similar stories, as the weight loss drugs have become more common.
36"It has exponentially increased," she said.
37Novo Nordisk is the drug company that makes Wegovy and Ozempic.
38The company said there was nothing in its testing that showed the drug would lead to aspiration.
39However, the drug-maker did say the medications can cause the stomach to empty more slowly.
40Hobai said he is also concerned about patients going off their medications for too long.
41For example, the drugs are used to control the blood sugar level of patients with diabetes.
42If they stop taking them before surgery, they may face a different kind of health problem.
43He said patients who are using the drugs should tell their doctors about them and discuss the risks of having surgery.
44"If you're taking this drug and you need an operation, you will need to have some extra precautions," he said.
45I'm Caty Weaver. And I'm Dan Friedell.
1Doctors who practice anesthesiology in the United States and Canada are expressing concern about patients who take popular weight loss drugs leading up to surgery. 2Anesthesiologists work together with surgeons to make sure their patients are asleep, or sedated, before medical procedures. 3More and more people are taking the weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy. Anesthesiologists say they are having trouble deciding when surgeries should take place. 4That is because the weight loss drugs cause people to hold food in their stomachs longer than usual. 5People who still have food in their stomachs when they are put to sleep before surgery risk a complication known as a pulmonary aspiration. That is that is the term for when someone breathes some of their stomach contents into their lungs. In extreme cases, the food particles can cause infection or even death. 6Most patients are told to not eat for about eight hours before surgery. However, the doctors say those guidelines may need to be changed for patients who are using the weight loss drugs. 7Ion Hobai is an anesthesiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He said everyone who takes the drugs should know about "such a serious sort of potential complication." 8Komodo Health is a technology company that works in healthcare. According to its research, nearly 6 million prescriptions for the weight loss drugs were written in the first five months of 2023. 9In June, the American Society of Anesthesiologists said patients should not take daily weight loss medications on the day of surgery. It also advised that patients should not get their weekly weight loss injection for a week before any sedation procedures. 10Dr. Michael Champeau is the head of the organization. He said the recommendation is based on experiences from anesthesiologists around the United States. 11A group of anesthesiologists, including Hobai, said they would recommend even more time off from the drugs before surgery. In the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, they suggested about three weeks. 12Dr. Philip Jones is an anesthesiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. After three weeks, he said, the drug should no longer be affecting the stomach. At that point, he said, "everything should go back to normal." 13Hobai said he is finishing a study of 200 patients who were using drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy before surgery. He said his results are similar to a smaller study in Brazil that found 25 percent of patients still had food in their stomachs 10 days after stopping the drug. 14Because of this information, the American Society of Anesthesiologists said doctors who are unsure of their patients' stomach contents should work differently. They say doctors should work as they would if they knew the patient's stomach was full. 15Aspiration only happens one time out of every 2,000 to 3,000 operations that require sedation. But when it does happen, the patients develop a lung injury half the time. That is why the doctors are concerned. 16One of Hobai's patients who had been taking Wegovy developed a problem that required serious care. He had not eaten for 18 hours before surgery. 17In another case, a woman taking a small amount of Ozempic did not eat for 10 hours before surgery. She was in the middle of a procedure that had to be stopped because doctors saw food in her stomach. 18Dr. Elisa Lund is an anesthesiologist at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She said many doctors have similar stories, as the weight loss drugs have become more common. 19"It has exponentially increased," she said. 20Novo Nordisk is the drug company that makes Wegovy and Ozempic. The company said there was nothing in its testing that showed the drug would lead to aspiration. However, the drug-maker did say the medications can cause the stomach to empty more slowly. 21Hobai said he is also concerned about patients going off their medications for too long. For example, the drugs are used to control the blood sugar level of patients with diabetes. If they stop taking them before surgery, they may face a different kind of health problem. 22He said patients who are using the drugs should tell their doctors about them and discuss the risks of having surgery. 23"If you're taking this drug and you need an operation, you will need to have some extra precautions," he said. 24I'm Caty Weaver. And I'm Dan Friedell. 25Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by The Associated Press. 26____________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28practice -v. to do something again and again, in this case as a task of employment 29surgery -n. medical treatment in which a doctor cuts into someone's body in order to repair or remove damaged or diseased parts 30procedure -n. a process or way of doing things, in this case related to a medical task done by a doctor 31complication -n. a way of speaking about a problem found after a medical procedure such as a surgery 32potential -n. the possibility of something happening in the future 33prescription -n. a written order by a doctor that permits a person to hold and use a medication 34exponentially -n. a way of discussing something that grows at a high rate, or higher than usual 35precaution -n. taking extra care to prevent a problem 36We want to hear from you. Do you know anyone who has had a problem with their surgery after taking one of the weight-loss drugs?