A new analysis indicates that discontinuing GLP-1 therapy like semaglutide may significantly increase cardiovascular risks among US veterans with type 2 diabetes, highlighting the importance of sustained treatment.
A new analysis from the Washington University School of Medicine suggests that the benefits of GLP-1 drugs may fade quickly when treatment stops, with cardiovascular risk rising again alongside weight regain and other metabolic changes. The findings add to a growing body of evidence that medicines such as semaglutide are not just short-term weight-loss tools, but treatments whose effects may depend on continued use.
The study tracked more than 333,000 US veterans with type 2 diabetes over three years and examined what happened after they stopped GLP-1 therapy. According to the researchers, even a six-month break was linked with a marked increase in major cardiovascular events, including heart attack, stroke and death, compared with people who stayed on treatment. After two years without the drugs, the risk was as much as 22% higher than among those who continued, ScienceDaily reported.
The strongest protection was seen in people who remained on GLP-1 therapy throughout the full study period. Those who took the medicines continuously for three years saw an 18% reduction in risk, while people who paused treatment and later restarted still recorded a 12% drop, indicating that the break in therapy reduced the overall benefit. Ziyad Al-Aly, the study’s lead author, said the return of weight was the most visible change, but the more subtle metabolic reversal may also matter, with inflammation, blood pressure and cholesterol potentially worsening after discontinuation, according to the report in BMJ Journals.
The results fit with earlier research showing that stopping semaglutide often leads to substantial weight regain and less favourable cardiometabolic outcomes. A recent meta-analysis indexed on PubMed found that semaglutide was associated with the greatest rebound in weight after withdrawal among anti-obesity medicines, reinforcing the idea that obesity should be treated as a chronic condition rather than a temporary problem. However, the Washington University findings do not prove that stopping GLP-1 therapy directly causes later heart attacks or strokes, and the data were drawn from a specific population of US veterans with type 2 diabetes, which limits how far the results can be applied to all patients taking these drugs.
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