Emergency physicians in Baltimore are seeing a rise in preventable ER visits tied to GLP-1 medications as more people buy them online and use them without medical supervision, according to a Nov. 10 report from WBAL-TV.
Miriam Fischer, MD, an emergency medicine physician at Columbia, Md.-based MedStar Health, told the station that patients arrive at the ER every day with side effects from GLP-1s. “We see a lot of people come in with stomach upset, but even more severe,” she said, describing patients who can’t keep anything down, can’t tolerate food or drink and have severe dehydration. She said the drugs can also lead to complications such as biliary disease, including gallbladder problems and pancreatitis, and that dehydration raises the risk of kidney stones.
Dr. Fischer said GLP-1s slow the digestive system, so mild nausea or stomach upset is normal, but the drugs should not cause severe pain. She called the medications “wonderful” but said patients need to be under a physician’s care.
The report comes amid broader safety concerns surrounding GLP-1s. The FDA is requiring a new warning on GLP-1 labels for a rare eye condition that can cause vision loss. Unregulated sources have also raised concerns: The FDA received reports that two people died after taking illicit products claiming to be retatrutide, and a recall of compounded tirzepatide cited a lack of sterility assurance. The agency has also warned telehealth firms over compounded GLP-1 claims.
