Adults who were taking GLP-1 drugs such as semaglutide or tirzepatide before elective surgery had slightly lower odds of heart complications and infections afterward, according to an analysis of more than 2 million surgical patients presented on October 18 at the American Society of Anesthesiologists' ANESTHESIOLOGY 2026 annual meeting in San Diego.
The headline percentages sound bigger than the real-world difference. Major heart-related complications occurred in 1.0% of GLP-1 users and 1.1% of nonusers, while postoperative infections occurred in 4.9% and 5.3%, according to figures reported by Newsweek. That works out to about one fewer heart complication and four fewer infections for every 1,000 patients.
