{"id":399089,"date":"2025-11-23T12:22:27","date_gmt":"2025-11-23T12:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/399089\/"},"modified":"2025-11-23T12:22:27","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T12:22:27","slug":"denmark-awards-compensation-for-vision-loss-linked-to-ozempic-and-wegovy-etpharma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/399089\/","title":{"rendered":"Denmark Awards Compensation for Vision Loss Linked to Ozempic and Wegovy, ETPharma"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/Copenhagen: Four people in Denmark who developed serious eye conditions after using popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs Wegovy and Ozempic are entitled to compensation, an independent body ruled Friday.<\/p>\n

More than 40 people had sought reimbursement after they said they had developed a serious eye condition as a result of using one of the drugs, both made by Novo Nordisk, according to the Danish Patient Compensation association<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The condition — NAION (non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy) — is a lack of blood supply to the optic nerve, which can lead to a loss of vision.<\/p>\n

The association said that it had ruled on five cases so far, and found four people who merited compensation. <\/p>\n

“It’s unfortunate for the patients who have been affected by the side effect. NAION is a serious condition that causes permanent and incurable damage to vision,” the association’s director, Karen-Inger Bast, said in a statement.<\/p>\n

Bast added that the cases were difficult to assess given that it was new medicine and the patients were already at increased risk of developing NAION.<\/p>\n

In total, the four patients would receive 800,000 kroner ($123,000), but the association noted that the amount could increase depending on the impact the condition could have on their lives going forward — for instance, if it affects their ability to work.<\/p>\n

Medical compensation in Denmark is generally paid out by health authorities.<\/p>\n

Last year, the Danish Medicines Agency asked a European medical watchdog to review a Danish study that showed a link between semaglutide — the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy — and NAION.<\/p>\n

In June, that watchdog — the PRAC (Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee) — concluded that NAION was a “very rare” side effect of semaglutide, affecting up to 1 in 10,000 users.<\/p>\n

Novo Nordisk said it had reviewed the decision by the Danish Patient Compensation.<\/p>\n

In a statement sent to AFP, the drugmaker noted that following PRAC’s findings, patient leaflets for all semaglutide products had been updated to include NAION as a “very rare” reaction to the drugs.<\/p>\n

But it said the “benefit-risk profile of semaglutide remains favorable”. <\/p>\n