The American Association of Poison Control Centers said all three cases were reported by the same poison control center and the FDA is investigating. A fourth case of hypoglycemia is suspected to be linked to a compounded version of the drug.
Last year, health authorities from Austria, Lebanon and Belgium reported similar findings, with the first two countries noting hospitalizations for hypoglycemia from fake Ozempic and Belgium’s drug regulator seizing counterfeit solutions filled with insulin rather than semaglutide.
In the U.S. last year, poison control centers answered about 3,000 calls concerning overdoses from patients taking Ozempic or Wegovy, and officials said the risk was likely tied to unapproved compounded versions.
Amid the viral popularity of this drug class approved for diabetes and weight loss, physicians, drugmakers, obesity organizations and the FDA are growing worried about “faux-zempic,” or counterfeit solutions.
Read more about how the surge in Ozempic prescriptions are affecting hospital operations here and here.
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