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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Natasha May

Weight loss drug Wegovy approved to treat heart disease in overweight and obese Australian patients

Wegovy PBS Disease Australia Heart Disease TGA Weight Loss SELECT
Boxes of Wegovy move along a packaging line
Wegovy is part of the same class of drugs as Ozempic, known as GLP-1 RAs, which mimic the hormone that stimulates the digestive system, essentially telling the body it is full after eating. Photograph: Tom Little/Reuters

A weight loss drug has been approved to treat heart disease in overweight and obese patients by Australia’s medicines regulator, in what experts say is a “new frontier for the drugs”.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) granted approval in December 2024 for semaglutide 2.4 mg, sold under the brand name Wegovy, to be used as a complementary therapy for adults with both cardiovascular disease and high body mass index, to reduce the related risk of heart attack, stroke or death.

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