A Man’s Rapid Weight Loss From Obesity Drug Led to Heart Problems

A 62-year-old antheral ended up successful the exigency country with manus tremors and bosom palpitations six months aft helium began taking the weight-loss cause tirzepatide, besides known arsenic Zepbound. According to his doctors, the man’s bosom predicament was apt caused by an overdose of his thyroid medicine that wasn’t adjusted decently pursuing his accelerated value nonaccomplishment from tirzepatide.

Tirzepatide is the latest incretin medication, a people of drugs that mimics gut and encephalon hormones important to regulating hunger and metabolism. It’s the archetypal approved incretin to harvester 2 of these hormones astatine once, GLP-1 and GIP—a dual-action mechanics that makes it much potent astatine treating obesity and precocious humor sugar. In objective trials, radical person mislaid an mean 20% oregon much of their baseline weight, good supra the emblematic occurrence seen with fare and workout alone. These results person besides surpassed the mean 15% value nonaccomplishment seen with Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide (sold nether the names Ozempic and Wegovy), the archetypal of this newer procreation of incretin drugs. Tirzepatide is sold nether the sanction Mounjaro to dainty benignant 2 diabetes and arsenic Zepbound to dainty obesity. But successful this peculiar case, published Monday successful the diary JAMA Internal Medicine, the drug’s effectiveness looks to person been an double-edged sword.

According to the report, the antheral visited an exigency section complaining of palpitations, excessive sweating, confusion, fever, and manus tremors. Testing soon revealed that helium had developed an atrial fibrillation, oregon an irregular heartbeat. The antheral had a past of benignant 1 diabetes, obesity, and autoimmune hypothyroidism, the second being a information wherever the immune strategy attacks the thyroid, which past leads to a changeless shortage of indispensable thyroid hormones. He had agelong been taking insulin for his diabetes and the cause levothyroxine for his hypothyroidism, but six months earlier his ER visit, helium was besides started connected tirzepatide for his weight. The antheral was astir 290 pounds earlier taking tirzepatide, and helium mislaid much than 80 pounds successful fractional a year.

Unfortunately, the dosage of levothyroxine needed to mimic a steadfast thyroid tin beryllium affected by tons of things, including assemblage weight. And the man’s value nonaccomplishment meant that helium was present taking excessively overmuch levothyroxine. His atrial fibrillation and resulting symptoms were officially determined to beryllium caused by an overflow of thyroid hormones (formally called thyrotoxicosis) successful “the discourse of accelerated value nonaccomplishment from tirzepatide.” Thankfully, helium received contiguous attraction for his information successful the exigency department.

Other probe has mostly recovered that incretin drugs whitethorn person adjacent much wellness benefits than presently thought. A survey this February found that tirzepatide tin assistance support humor unit successful check, portion different survey successful April indicated that it could beryllium utilized to dainty slumber apnea. But the man’s doctors accidental this lawsuit should supply a “teachable moment”—the acquisition being that each drug, nary substance however useful, tin person risks that should beryllium proactively monitored by clinicians. For situations similar this, doctors should see checking and readjusting people’s levothyroxine dosage each 4 to 6 weeks, astatine slightest initially, they said, adding that determination are different drugs affected by value that should beryllium reevaluated portion taking incretin, specified arsenic hormonal commencement control.