Denmark compensates patients for vision loss linked to Novo Nordisk drugs

This photo shows Novo Nordisk headquarters in Bagsvaerd, Denmark, on Feb. 5, 2025. (Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)

COPENHAGEN — Four patients in Denmark, who experienced vision loss after using Novo Nordisk’s popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs Wegovy and Ozempic, have been granted compensation, the Danish Patient Compensation association said on Friday.

The two drugs, which contain the active ingredient semaglutide, have been linked in very rare cases to a serious eye condition known as non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), the European Medicines Agency’s safety committee noted in June. The condition can cause permanent vision loss.

Following the EMA’s findings, Novo Nordisk updated the labels for Wegovy and Ozempic to state that semaglutide may cause NAION in up to 1 in 10,000 patients.

The Danish Patient Compensation association, an independent body that evaluates patient claims on behalf of the state, said on Friday it had ruled in five of the 43 claims it received regarding vision loss allegedly linked to the medications.

Four patients were awarded a combined 800,000 Danish crowns (US$123,253), while one claim was dismissed, it said. The state funds compensation payments awarded by the association.

The association described the rulings as “very complex,” requiring input from an optic nerve specialist.

A Novo Nordisk spokesperson said: “Patient safety is our top priority,” adding that the company “believes that the benefit-risk profile of semaglutide remains favorable.”

(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen. Editing by Mark Potter)