The nurse practitioner in rural Georgia, who was taking the blockbuster GLP-1 medication Wegovy to lose weight, said her only symptom was a sudden loss of vision in her right eye.<\/p>\n
\u201cI woke up one morning and I was like, \u2018What is wrong with my eye?\u2019\u201d Wirth told NBC News correspondent Stephanie Gosk.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was fine when I went to bed, and I woke up, and the vision was gone. \u2026 There was no warning sign at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
She described it as initially \u201cmissing a wedge\u201d out of her right eye. Now, her vision in that eye is like looking through glasses that have been smeared with petroleum jelly \u2014 Wirth can still see light, but can\u2019t read and doesn\u2019t have depth perception, she noted. <\/p>\n
Her entire life has been upended: Wirth stopped driving, had to retire early and is now more dependent on others.<\/p>\n
![\"Diane](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/glp-1-ozempic-vision-loss-03-mh-09222026-5c51a3.jpg\")
Diane Wirth’s life has been upended since losing her vision, which she believes was due to taking Wegovy.Courtesy Diane Wirth<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been very challenging, and I would not want anyone else to have to go through this,\u201d Wirth said.<\/p>\n
She explained she would have never taken the drug if she knew there was a potential for vision loss, but it was not listed on the drug label. It has not been confirmed that Wirth\u2019s vision loss is a direct result of taking a GLP-1 medication.<\/p>\n
Wirth is suing Novo Nordisk, the pharmaceutical giant that makes Wegovy, for damages she alleges were a result of her using the drug. The suit was filed earlier this year in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk told NBC News in a statement that it \u201cbelieves the personal injury lawsuits filed in the U.S. are without merit and (we) are vigorously defending them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jason Goldstein, Wirth\u2019s attorney at Parker Waichman LLP, said his firm represents at least 150 people who\u2019ve been diagnosed with NAION after using a variety of GLP-1 drugs for both weight loss and Type 2 diabetes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a devastating condition,\u201d Goldstein told NBC News. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe label needs to be updated if the companies want to do the responsible thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pharmaceutical Companies Respond<\/p>\n
The drug labels for Ozempic<\/a> and Mounjaro<\/a> \u2014 which are approved to treat Type 2 diabetes \u2014 list \u201cchanges in vision\u201d as possible side effects.<\/p>\n The drug labels for Zepbound<\/a> and Wegovy<\/a> \u2014 which are approved for weight loss \u2014 instruct patients with Type 2 diabetes taking those drugs to let their doctor know if they notice vision changes.<\/p>\n According to the World Health Organization<\/a>, citing the European Medicines Agency, NAION is a very rare side effect of semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, potentially affecting up to 1 in 10,000 users.<\/p>\n However, a June 2026 systemic review<\/a> by the American Academy of Ophthalmology did not find evidence of \u201ca consistent overall increase in NAION risk,\u201d the authors wrote.<\/p>\n Novo Nordisk, the pharmaceutical giant that makes semaglutide \u2014 the active ingredient in both Ozempic and Wegovy \u2014 told NBC News that it hasn\u2019t seen any safety signals in its randomized clinical trials when it comes to NAION, adding that it believes the lawsuits are \u201cwithout merit.\u201d<\/p>\n Eli Lilly, which makes Zepbound and Mounjaro, also said patient safety is its top priority, adding that it actively monitors safety information for all its drugs. \u201cWe will continue to review data, including any data regarding ophthalmic issues,\u201d the company said in a statement.<\/p>\n The U.S. Food and Drug Administration told NBC News it routinely monitors the safety of drugs after they\u2019ve been approved and entered the market. The FDA \u201cidentifies safety signals from a variety of sources, evaluates the available data and takes regulatory actions when appropriate,\u201d it noted in a statement. <\/p>\n A study<\/a> on the risk of NAION in patients with Type 2 diabetes who are using GLP-1s is being conducted by the FDA and in progress.<\/p>\n What Doctors Say About the Risk<\/p>\n A statement<\/a> by the North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society and the American Academy of Ophthalmology, published in August 2026, noted that based on current evidence, the \u201coverall magnitude of the risk of NAION remains low\u201d in patients taking GLP-1 drugs such as semaglutide. <\/p>\n \u201cNew evidence is emerging rapidly, and the results of future studies may alter the current conclusions,\u201d the authors added.<\/p>\n When it comes to overall incidence of NAION<\/a> in the U.S., it\u2019s estimated there are 2-10 cases per 100,000 people over the age of 50, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology.<\/p>\n In patients who take GLP-1s, many papers have found an association with a two- to four-fold increase in risk, which still makes the condition very rare, said Dr. Manjot Gill, a retina specialist and professor of ophthalmology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.<\/p>\n \u201cThe take-home message would be that while there is an increase in relative risk \u2014 and this is really an association, we haven\u2019t determined an absolute causation \u2014 the absolute risk is still very small,\u201d Gill told NBC News.<\/p>\n \u201cThe overall health benefits of these drugs would likely far outweigh the very small increased risk of this very, very rare complication.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Diane](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/glp-1-ozempic-vision-loss-02-mh-09222026-43c234.jpg\")
Diane Wirth.Coutesy Diane Wirth<\/p>\n