Ozempic Warning: 21-Year-Old Woman Suffers Fatal Blood Complication After Just Three Weeks Of Taking Mounjaro
A 21-year-old woman developed fatally poisonous blood after taking a popular weight-loss drug for just three weeks.
The unnamed patient, who had injected a drug from the same class as Ozempic, was admitted to hospital after two days of abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhea.
Blood tests showed she was suffering from a potentially fatal condition called ketoacidosis. This happens when fat-melting proteins called ketones build up in the blood.
In small, short-term doses, ketones are relatively harmless and can accelerate weight loss. But in large quantities, they cause the blood to become too acidic, causing catastrophic heart problems.
The patient, whose case was documented in the European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicinewas found to have 26 times the normal level of ketones in her blood.
An unnamed patient in Kuwait developed ketoacidosis after taking tirzepatide, the active ingredient in the successful weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound
The cases have been recorded in an FDA monitoring system used to track the safety of drugs used in the US, called FAERS. They are shown graphically above
Three weeks earlier, she started taking tirzepatide, the active ingredient in the successful weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound, once a week. She had lost about 25 pounds.
The complication is one in a long line of side effects linked to GLP-1 agonists such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, which have also been linked to more than 100 deaths in the US.
Normally the body breaks down glucose, or sugar, in food and converts it into energy.
But when the body doesn’t get enough, it breaks down fat stores as a backup. This chemical reaction produces ketones as a byproduct.
This could be more likely in patients taking GLP-1 agonists such as Ozempic or Mounjaro, because the drugs suppress appetite, meaning patients don’t get much energy from food.
Ketoacidosis is normally seen in diabetic patients because their bodies cannot produce enough insulin – which helps convert food into energy – causing them to break down fat instead.
Symptoms include excessive thirst, frequent urination, vomiting, stomach pain, weakness, shortness of breath, confusion and fruity-smelling breath. This is because ketoacidosis produces high levels of the chemical acetone, which has a distinctive fruity odor.
Left untreated, ketoacidosis can lead to low blood sugar, brain swelling and death.
In the hospital, the patient from Kuwait developed severe breathing problems, a high heart rate and increased blood pressure.
She was given IV fluids to restore her sodium and potassium levels and stop the vomiting and diarrhea.
Four weeks later, her symptoms disappeared, although she had gained two pounds. The patient was advised to stop taking tirzepatide.
Ketoacidosis adds to a long list of complications associated with blockbuster weight loss drugs.
Patients previously told DailyMail.com they suffered organ failure, stomach paralysis and suicidal thoughts.
They include a mother who suffered kidney failure on her daughter’s birthday and a man whose sister begged him for the third time not to attempt suicide after Ozempic “ruined” his life.
Ashley Keenan, 37, was diagnosed with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in 2021 after several months of taking Ozempic.
She told DailyMail.com that her potassium became so low that her heart stopped.
She then had to spend 10 days in intensive care with DKA, gallstones and pancreatitis – inflammation of the pancreas.
Ashley Keenan (left) developed diabetic ketoacidosis after taking Ozempic. She told DailyMail.com that her potassium became so low that her heart stopped. Brea Hand (right) said she was diagnosed with gastroparesis after taking the drug
‘For the first 48 hours they weren’t sure if I would make it. “I can’t tell you how strange it is to have doctors come to you from the ER to see if I’m still alive,” Ms. Keenan said.
‘My body had become acidic and my organs were shutting down.’
Additionally, a DailyMail.com analysis of FDA data revealed that more than 100 deaths have been linked to these weight-loss drugs.
In total, the FDA system has recorded 117 fatalities among people taking successful weight-loss drugs since 2018.
Of these, 81 were linked to patients taking semaglutide – the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy – while 36 were linked to patients taking tirzepatide.
The symptoms recorded ranged from seizures to intestinal blockages and pancreatic cancer.
Experts told DailyMail.com they were surprised the number of deaths from weight-loss drugs was ‘not higher’.