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Some Risks of Gastrointestinal Adverse Events Associated With Glucagon-Like PEPTIDE-1 Receptor Agonists Are Likely Explained by BMI.
Aliment Pharmacol Ther · 2025
Last updated 2026-05-28A study of 8,792 obese U.S. adults without diabetes found that those taking GLP-1 drugs had more than twice the risk of gastroparesis and a slightly higher risk of biliary disease compared to a matched group. The risk of acute pancreatitis or obstruction was not clearly increased, though not matching for BMI suggested a higher pancreatitis risk. Semaglutide led to more weight loss but also increased the risk of biliary disease.
AI summary of the abstract below.
| Journal | Aliment Pharmacol Ther, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Citations | 1 |
| Molecules | — |
| Conditions studied | Obesity |
Abstract
We performed a re-analysis of the gastrointestinal risks of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA) in obese US adult patients without diabetes using the TriNetX database (GLP-1 RA n = 8792; Bupropion-naltrexone n = 8792) after accounting for initial BMI. GLP-1 RA users had higher risks of gastroparesis (aHR 2.30; 95% CI 1.19-4.46) and biliary disease (aHR 1.27; 95% CI 0.96-1.39) but did not have a conclusively elevated risk of acute pancreatitis or obstruction. Not matching for BMI suggested an elevated pancreatitis risk (aHR 1.75; 95% CI 1.13-2.70). Semaglutide conferred superior weight loss but increased biliary risk.
Verbatim abstract via PubMed 40356540 ↗