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Investing.com -- The use of the weight-loss drug Wegovy among American teenagers has seen a significant rise, according to new data analyzed by Reuters.
The data shows that the average rate of adolescents starting treatment with the Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) drug increased by 50% last year, reaching 14.8 prescriptions per 100,000 teenagers. This is a substantial increase from the rate of 9.9 prescriptions per 100,000 in 2023, the first full year Wegovy was available to those aged 12 and above.
The rate of new prescriptions continued to climb during the first three months of this year, reaching 17.3 per 100,000. Despite this increase, it still represents a small fraction of the estimated 23,000 out of every 100,000 teenagers in the country who are living with obesity. The uptake of the drug among adolescents is slower compared to U.S. adults.
Dr. Cate Varney, director of obesity medicine at the University of Virginia Health system, commented on the trend. "It’s promising that more young people are using these medications, but it’s still a very small percentage of patients with severe obesity that are getting access to them," said Dr. Varney. "When lifestyle changes alone are insufficient, we need these additional tools."
The data was obtained by health data firm Truveta, which reviewed the electronic health records of 1.3 million patients aged between 12 and 17. The data encompasses 30 U.S. health systems, including over 900 hospitals and 20,000 clinics across the country.
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