Wegovy for the heart

A new study released by Novo Nordisk shows that Wegovy isn’t just a weight loss drug. It can also reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events.

Novo said the eagerly-awaited study results, which have not been peer reviewed, showed that patients on Wegovy had a 20% lower incidence of heart attack, stroke or death from heart disease compared to those on a placebo.

That’s a big deal because, if it pans out, it could change CMS’s classification of Wegovy from a lifestyle drug to a real drug, eligible for that sweet, sweet Medicare and -caid funding. (In fact, as we reported a few days ago, it might be a lot more cost effective to cover weight loss drugs than to pay to treat the conditions it brings.)

Speaking of Wegovy…

With weight loss drugs firmly in the mainstream, the latest folks hopping on the This Can Help My Patients bandwagon are psychiatrists.

That’s not just because being overweight has psychological issues, but because many of the meds they prescribe — especially antipsychotics and mood stabilizers — can lead to weight gain. Add to this that patients with depression or anxiety might not be willing or able to exercise as much as they should.

As one psychiatrist put it, “It’s been a real welcome addition […] for people who truly have endured significant weight gain because of atypical antipsychotics and have doggedly tried their best to overcome that.”

Why you should care about a drought in Central America

Because that includes Panama, and there’s a big ol’ canal there. With a major drought like the one going on there today, there’s not enough water to “lift” ships through the canal^*. That means the Panama Canal Authority is starting to put limits on the size of ships it’ll allow though. And that means potential supply disruptions for cargo from Asia — like pharmaceuticals.

And with El Niño coming down the pike — and the lower rainfall it brings — it may get worse.

^* Fun fact: “Every vessel that moves through the canal requires approximately 52 million gallons of water.” 

Post-partum pill pricing

Yesterday we told you about the approval of zuranolone, the first pill to treat postpartum depression. But now there’s a pricing wrinkle.

Sage Therapeutics had hoped the drug would also be approved for treating major depressive disorder, but it wasn’t. There are a lot more MDD patients than postpartum patients out there, so the ruling means a lot less money for the company — so it will likely setting a higher price for the drug to keep investors happy.

[C]ompany officials said they are “committed” to ensuring the drug remains accessible. But they also said a variety of factors will affect how zuranolone is priced in the absence of the MDD indication and its much larger patient population.

Pfizer limits some orders

In the latest flake of fallout from the Rocky Mount, NC, tornado continues, Pfizer said it’s limiting access to some injectables to emergency orders only.

Pfizer’s list includes injections for dextrose, sodium chloride, and the heart failure medication dobutamine — these can only be ordered via direct shipment from the company or its representatives until further notice.

This is called “government working”

Remember, these days any disagreement is a battle or a fight^*, like the current one between the EPA and the FDA.

The EPA wants to limit people’s exposure to ethylene oxide — a chemical used in sterilization facilities and chemical plants. It’s a known carcinogen and it’s affecting people around the plants where it’s used.

But the FDA is concerned that EPA’s proposal — which will affect the plants that sterilize half of all medical devices in the U.S. — will put yet another crimp in the supply chain if it’s enacted too quickly.

And so … they’re working together to sort it out so residents can be protected and the medical-device supply chain sees as little disruption as possible. In other words, they’re doing their jobs.

^* Kids: In the Long Long Ago, people could disagree about something and the world would assume, correctly, that they’d simply work it out like adults.

A couple of Covid updates

Meet “Eris”

There’s a new Covid-19 strain/variant/sub-variant/whatever making a name for itself: Eris^*. It’s from the XBB lineage, so it should be covered by this fall’s boosters. It seems to be slightly more virulent than the last subvariant, but really is of most interest to people who like to track the virus like a fantasy football team.

^* Technically EG.5.1 or XBB.1.9.2.5.1. It goes  Covid-19 → Omicron → B.1.1.529 → XBB → XBB.1.9 aka Hyperion →  Eris. I think. 

Elsewhere: Cyprus Cats edition

Veterinarians on Cyprus have been given access to the government’s stockpile of human Covid-19 medication to be used on the island’s cats, which are facing an outbreak of feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) — a deadly disease, but one that can’t be transmitted to humans.

It’s killed about 8,000 cats so far, but molnupiravir can prevent although the virus is unrelated to Covid. The government said the stockpile (for humans) won’t be compromised by giving the pills to cats.