Italy: Semaglutide, used for type 2 diabetes, is in short supply

By Cristiano Antonino Last updated Apr 8, 2023

AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco) and the manufacturer of Ozempic – Semaglutide report that ‘any other use’ of the drug, outside the treatment of type 2 diabetes, ‘including weight management, represents an off-label use and currently jeopardises the availability of Ozempic for the indicated population’

It is talked about as a miracle drug that can make overweight people lose weight and is praised by VIPs and influencers in Italy and overseas.

Semaglutide, in Italy, is indicated and reimbursed as a treatment for type 2 diabetes and not as a weight-loss drug

AIFA has placed Ozempic on the shortage list, pointing out that the increase in demand for this molecule ‘has led to shortages that are expected to continue through 2023’ and ‘it is not possible to predict with certainty when it will be sufficient to fully meet current demand’.

Semaglutide indicated in the treatment of type 2 diabetes

For a patient with type 2 diabetes, not being able to access the drug can be a problem with serious clinical consequences, including hyperglycaemia.

Given the limited availability of this drug, it is important that doctors take steps to find suitable treatment alternatives, after careful clinical evaluation.

‘Ozempic,’ recalls AIFA, ‘is indicated exclusively for the treatment of adults with inadequately controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus in addition to diet and exercise.

Any other use, including weight management, represents an off-label use and currently jeopardises the availability of Ozempic for the indicated population.”

Semaglutide sponsored as slimming drug

There are many celebrities in the US who have used semaglutide to lose weight, even if they were not obese.

The slimming effects of this drug have been extolled by celebrities and influencers on Instagram and on Tik Tok, who praise its slimming properties.

In Italy, however, the drug cannot be prescribed for weight loss, and if it is selling like hot cakes, it means there is a problem with inappropriate prescriptions or smuggling.

In France, the shortage is being felt and the government has decided to tighten controls on distribution.

The alarm of diabetologists

In Italy, the president of the Association of Diabetes Physicians (AMD), Dr Graziano Di Cianni, explains that using this drug with the aim of losing weight is ‘totally improper’.

“We know, especially from the way the phenomenon emerges on social media,” the specialist emphasises, “that the drug is also used, at great risk, by anorexic people who want to lose more weight, exploiting the molecule’s ability to reduce their sense of hunger.

Don’t use drugs for purposes other than those for which they are prescribed and don’t leave people who need them to stay healthy without therapy!