Ozempic, Mounjaro manufacturers sued by Louisiana woman over risk of stomach paralysis

(The Hill) - A Louisiana woman sued the manufacturers of popular weight loss drugs Ozempic and Mounjaro on Wednesday, alleging that the drug makers failed to warn patients about the risk of severe gastrointestinal problems.

The lawsuit claims that Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the respective manufacturers of Ozempic and Mounjaro, “downplayed the severity of the gastrointestinal events” caused by their medications, such as gastroparesis, or stomach paralysis, and gastroenteritis, or stomach inflammation.

Jaclyn Bjorklund, 44, took Ozempic for more than a year before switching to Mounjaro in July and suffered from “severe gastrointestinal events,” including severe vomiting, stomach pain, gastrointestinal burning, hospitalization, and the loss of teeth from excessive vomiting, according to the lawsuit. 

While the labels for both medications note that they delay gastric emptying and can cause a variety of stomach problems — including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and constipation — they do not explicitly warn of gastroparesis as a risk.

The lawsuit accuses Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly of being aware of an association between medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro and severe gastrointestinal issues and choosing to ignore and not disclose this to patients.

As a result, the lawsuit alleged Bjorklund "was and still is caused to suffer from severe gastrointestinal issues, as well as other severe and personal injuries which are permanent and lasting in nature, physical pain, and mental anguish."

Ozempic and Mounjaro, which were developed to manage blood sugar levels in adults with Type 2 diabetes, have recently grown in popularity for their off-label use for weight loss.

The Hill has reached out to Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly for comment.