• Muhammad Imran Butt, Khalid Mania Alkhalifah, Muhammad Riazuddin, Saud Mohammed Almuammar, Salman Mohammed Almuammar, Ghayda Abdulkader Alhifthi, Fahad Wali Ahmed, Samia Mohamed Al Hashim, and Najeeb Waheed.
• From the Department of Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• Ann Saudi Med. 2024 Nov 1; 44 (6): 361368361-368.

BackgroundSemaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1, is an effective antidiabetic drug promoting weight loss and providing cardiovascular protection. The original trials did not include participants from Saudi Arabia; hence, the study's findings are expected to be useful.ObjectivesExplore the efficacy, safety, and favorable effects of once-weekly subcutaneous semaglutide (1 mg) in patients with type 2 diabetes and those who received it as an off-license prescription without having diabetes.DesignRetrospective review of medical records.SettingDepartment of medicine at our institution.Patients And MethodsThis retrospective observational study evaluated patients receiving the glucagon-like peptide-1 analog semaglutide, with the trade name Ozempic. The weight, height, body mass index, blood pressure, and laboratory data, including serum creatinine and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels and urine albumin/creatinine ratio, were recorded. Moreover, any history of medical comorbidities, such as cardiovascular diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, and heart failure, was documented before and after drug administration.Main Outcome MeasuresGlycemic and weight loss efficacy.Sample Size1007 patients.ResultsThe median age of the patients was 57.0 years, comprising 60.28% females. Among them, 955 and 442 patients received the medication for at least 3 and 6 months, respectively. Our results show a 4.4% weight loss and 0.4% improvement in HBA1c in patients with diabetes. Similar results were observed in the patients without diabetes in terms of weight along with a significant decrease in diastolic blood pressure. Our results also show stability in the serum creatinine and urine albumin creatinine ratio. The drug was equally effective in males and females.ConclusionTreatment with once-weekly subcutaneous semaglutide (1 mg) led to clinically significant weight loss and improved HbA1c level and cardiometabolic risk factors such as blood pressure.LimitationsRetrospective design.

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