April 12, 2024 – Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG), a non-surgical weight reduction procedure, is cheaper over 5 years than using semaglutide, the lively ingredient in Ozempic, Wegovy and other weight reduction medications, a study suggests .
ESG reduces the dimensions of the stomach. A suture device is inserted through the throat and into the stomach, where it folds and folds sews the sides of the stomach. ESG isn't the identical as sleeve gastrectomy, which involves removing a big portion of the stomach.
For the study, published Friday in JAMA network opened, the researchers used a Markov cohort model that measures the experiences of a hypothetical group of patients over a set time period. The study took place from September 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023 and included adult patients within the US healthcare system with a body mass index of 35 to 39.9. (A BMI of 30 or higher falls into the obesity range.)
Over a 12 months, ESG was not as cost-effective as semaglutide, the study said. After that, things modified.
The researchers predicted that “the semaglutide strategy” would cost $33,583 greater than the ESG strategy over five years. They also predicted that about 20% of individuals taking semaglutide would stop taking the drug because of drug intolerance or other reasons and would likely gain weight again, the study said.
Overall, “ESG proved to be a cost-effective strategy, enabling greater weight loss and cost savings.” “The annual cost of semaglutide would need to be reduced three-fold, from $13,618 to $3,591, for it to be a competitive alternative,” write the researchers.
“That's the reality – everyone just wants the drugs, but the reality is the drugs are expensive,” said Marina Kurian, MD, president of the
American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, whose doctors perform the gastric sleeve and other weight reduction procedures. “And when you stop doing that, there is a significant weight gain. Patients may gain some weight after surgery, but generally not all of the weight they had before.”
“If you look at a cost analysis, it's not uncommon for weight loss surgeries to provide a payback over two or three years.”
are cost neutral,” said Kurian, who was not involved within the study.
Semaglutide drugs were originally intended to treat type 2 diabetes, but their status spread when people taking the drugs also lost weight. Semaglutide is injected weekly and causes insulin to be released in response to high blood sugar levels, equivalent to after a meal. It reduces the quantity of sugar your liver produces.
Doctors say ESG and the semaglutide drugs can only reduce weight if people commit to changing their weight-reduction plan, exercising recurrently and making other lifestyle changes.
“The study suggests that although semaglutide is effective for weight loss, it is not economically viable in the long term compared to ESG, which remains a cost savings,” the researchers said.