07/25/2021, 6:19 pm
Updated on: 07/25/2021, 6:19 PM
Doctors in the border triangle are using a new treatment designed to help patients lose weight.
The self-injection pen is called Wegovy, and doctors say that it brings patients weight under control and helps with other related problems.
Stamford Health’s Cardio Metabolic Clinic Endocrinologist Dr. Maria Asnis says it helps with weight-related medical problems like high blood pressure, heart disease, liver dysfunction, kidney dysfunction, and sugar disorders.
She says that it also makes them feel full faster.
Dr. Asnis says the drug boosts the production of a hormone naturally produced in the small intestine. “It improves the body’s processing of carbohydrates by improving insulin sensitivity,” says Asnis.
Asnis says the drug will fill people up faster, but comes with several side effects like acid reflux and nausea.
The doctor says the payment needs to be negotiated with the major airlines Medicare and Medicaid.
A lower-dose version of the treatment, Ozempic, is usually covered as a treatment for diabetes.
Research shows that patients who take Wegovy, along with strategic diet and exercise planning, lose almost 15% of their body weight in just over a year.
Dr. Asnis says patients are grateful for help with their struggle.
“Some of the things they say are, ‘It changed my life, I feel like me again, I’m proud to go out,'” Asnis says. “‘I feel healthier, I feel good, I have so much energy.'”
