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Medicinal Semaglutide

A dark reading room for the semaglutide record — the incretin that quiets the hunger, and the liver it learned to mend.

WHERE THE MEDICINE FACTS CAME FROM

Semaglutide references name the studies behind the health claims.

A source number can help your clinician find the study behind a question.

Return to the findingsLearn who writes the site

How Semaglutide sources can help at your visit

The medicine called semaglutide is backed by studies of people and some tests in animals. This page explains how a source number can help with your questions. A number in brackets shows which study or review supports a claim.

Many sources compare what happened to people who received different care. Others are reviews or reports made after the medicine reached the public. The study list and links are easiest to use on a screen; a printed copy may not show them. I’d bring the page and source number to your clinician when a finding concerns you.

  1. Wilding JPH, et al. (STEP 1 Study Group). Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity. N Engl J Med. 2021;384(11):989-1002. ↗
  2. Marso SP, et al. (SUSTAIN-6 Investigators). Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2016;375(19):1834-1844. ↗
  3. Lincoff AM, et al. (SELECT Trial Investigators). Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Obesity without Diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2023;389(24):2221-2232. ↗
  4. Gabery S, et al. Semaglutide lowers body weight in rodents via distributed neural pathways. JCI Insight. 2020;5(6):e133429. ↗
  5. Smits MM, Van Raalte DH. Safety of Semaglutide. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2021;12:645563. ↗
  6. Perkovic V, et al. (FLOW Trial Committees and Investigators). Effects of Semaglutide on Chronic Kidney Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2024;391(2):109-121. ↗
  7. Aronne LJ, et al. (SURMOUNT-5 Investigators). Tirzepatide as Compared with Semaglutide for the Treatment of Obesity. N Engl J Med. 2025;392(20):2017-2028. ↗
  8. Sanyal AJ, et al. (ESSENCE Study Group). Phase 3 Trial of Semaglutide in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis. N Engl J Med. 2025;392(21):2089-2099. ↗
  9. Mahapatra MK, Karuppasamy M, Sahoo BM. Therapeutic Potential of Semaglutide, a Newer GLP-1 Receptor Agonist, in Abating Obesity, Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis and Neurodegenerative Diseases. Pharm Res. 2022;39(6):1233-1248. ↗
  10. Davies M, et al. (STEP 2 Study Group). Semaglutide 2.4 mg once a week in adults with overweight or obesity, and type 2 diabetes (STEP 2): a randomised, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial. Lancet. 2021;397(10278):971-984. ↗
  11. Avgerinos I, et al. Efficacy, safety and cardiovascular outcomes of once-daily oral semaglutide in patients with type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2020;22(3):335-345. ↗
  12. Pratley RE, et al. Semaglutide versus dulaglutide once weekly in patients with type 2 diabetes (SUSTAIN 7): a randomised, open-label, phase 3b trial. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2018;6(4):275-286. ↗
  13. Frias JP, et al. Efficacy and safety of once-weekly semaglutide 2.0 mg versus 1.0 mg in patients with type 2 diabetes (SUSTAIN FORTE): a double-blind, randomised, phase 3B trial. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2021;9(9):563-574. ↗
  14. Wharton S, et al. Gastrointestinal tolerability of once-weekly semaglutide 2.4 mg in adults with overweight or obesity, and the relationship between gastrointestinal adverse events and weight loss. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2022;24(1):94-105. ↗
  15. Assessment of Thyroid Carcinogenic Risk and Safety Profile of GLP1-RA: A Review. Int J Mol Sci. 2024;25(8):4346. ↗
  16. McCrimmon RJ, et al. Impact of Semaglutide on Body Composition in Adults With Overweight or Obesity (STEP 1 substudy). J Endocr Soc. 2021;5(Suppl 1):A16-A17. ↗
  17. Wilding JPH, et al. Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: The STEP 1 trial extension. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2022;24(8):1553-1564. ↗
  18. Rubino D, et al. Effect of Continued Weekly Subcutaneous Semaglutide vs Placebo on Weight Loss Maintenance in Adults With Overweight or Obesity (STEP 4): A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2021;325(14):1414-1425. ↗
  19. Alopecia associated with the use of semaglutide and tirzepatide: A disproportionality analysis. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2025. ↗
  20. Telogen Effluvium Associated With Weight Loss: A Single Center Retrospective Study. Ann Dermatol. 2024;36(6):348-356. ↗
  21. Mahapatra MK, Karuppasamy M, Sahoo BM. Semaglutide. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024. ↗
  22. Aroda VR, et al. Current Understanding of Sodium N-(8-[2-Hydroxylbenzoyl] Amino) Caprylate (SNAC) as an Absorption Enhancer: The Oral Semaglutide Experience. Clin Diabetes. 2023;41(3):360-373. ↗
  23. Au Yeung SL, et al. Drug-Drug Interactions Between Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonists and Oral Medications: A Systematic Review. Drug Saf. 2024;47(4):343-356. ↗