Medical Management

Several medications — some of them new — are available to treat obesity. The newer ones include the injectables: Saxenda, Wegovy, Ozempic, Zepbound, and Mounjaro. The generic names for the most popular of these are semaglutide (sem-uh-GLUE-tide) and tirzepatide (ter-ZEP-uh-tide).

For obese patients who can tolerate therapeutic doses, average weight loss is around 11–12% with semaglutide, or roughly 20% with tirzepatide, after about a year of therapy. Dr. Fitzer has written several blog articles about the ins and outs of the injectable meds. You can check them out in Dr. Fitzer Dissects the News.

Advantages

Injectables are usually well tolerated. Most side effects are gastrointestinal (e.g., nausea, constipation, diarrhea, etc.) and are not severe. With the exception of Saxenda, these medications need to be taken only once per week.

Downsides

Injectables are inconsistently covered by insurance and can cost many hundreds of dollars per month out of pocket. Another consideration: weight loss lasts only as long as therapy continues. When patients stop the injectables, regain of the lost weight is the usual outcome.

Oral Medications

Beyond the injectables, various oral medications are available — including Contrave, Xenical, phentermine, and diethylpropion, among others. Dr. Fitzer has more than two decades of experience managing GLP-1s and other weight-loss medications, individually and in combination.

For a full explanation of the medical options, make an appointment with Dr. Fitzer.