Be careful about the side effects of taking "slimming injection"! Food and Drug Administration received 63 reports of suspected adverse reactions

In recent years, more and more people are using "slimming injections" to lose weight. At the same time, many patients who have difficulty controlling diabetes rely on "slimming injections" to control blood sugar. However, the related side effects have also attracted public attention. Liu Jiaping, the Drug Section of the Food and Drug Administration, said that this year, the Food and Drug Administration received 63 cases of suspected adverse reactions involving the use of GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs, and the reported symptoms were mostly gastrointestinal diseases.

Liu Jiaping pointed out that the Food and Drug Administration has required pharmaceutical companies and medical institutions to strengthen safety monitoring and reporting. Among the adverse reaction notifications related to GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs received by the National Adverse Drug Reaction Notification System this year, 39 were for weight loss and 24 were for diabetes treatment. The reported symptoms include gastrointestinal diseases (including abdominal pain, intestinal obstruction, pancreatitis), hypoglycemia, nausea, vomiting, injection site discomfort, etc.

Regarding the side effects management of slimming injections, Liu Jiaping said that the Food and Drug Administration has written to the manufacturer to develop a post-marketing safety study (PASS) plan and formulate a risk assessment and management plan (RMP). It also continues to monitor domestic and foreign drug safety information, collect and compile relevant data for evaluation, and take corresponding risk management and control measures for new drug risks.

Liu Jiaping also mentioned that in order to prevent illegal drugs from entering the market, the Food and Drug Administration annually requests local government health bureaus to strengthen inspections of the flow and use management of GLP-1 receptor agonist injections, and cooperates with the Meta platform to remove illegal posts and cooperates with the Taiwan Internet Information Center to block illegal websites. It also reports keywords for online sales of contraband, so that e-commerce platform operators can conduct independent inspections based on keywords.

The Food and Drug Administration reminds that GLP-1 receptor agonist injections are prescribed by physicians. People should use them in accordance with the prescription and medical advice after examination and professional evaluation by a physician. If an adverse drug reaction occurs during medication, they should seek medical assistance immediately.

In addition, when medical personnel or patients suspect that an adverse reaction has occurred due to the use of drugs, they should immediately report it to the National Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Center established by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Again, please do not purchase it through informal channels or administer it yourself to avoid health hazards due to improper use or unknown sources of drugs.