Semaglutide cuts cardiovascular risk by 20% in heart-disease patients

A large analysis of a major clinical trial found that weekly injections of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the weight loss medicines Wegovy and Ozempic, reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events by about 20 percent in people with existing heart disease, and that the benefit occurred regardless of how much weight participants lost. The findings, published in The Lancet on data from the SELECT trial, apply to adults aged 45 and older who were overweight or obese and already had cardiovascular disease but did not have diabetes.

The SELECT trial randomized 17,604 participants across multiple countries to receive either weekly semaglutide or a placebo and followed them for roughly two years. Initial reporting from the trial showed a 20 percent reduction in the combined risk of heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death among those given semaglutide. The new analysis examined whether those cardiovascular gains were explained by weight loss, baseline body mass index, or changes in abdominal fat.

Researchers found the reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events was largely independent of total body weight lost or starting BMI. However, reductions in waist...