Medical Weight Loss Exclusions and Requirements
Semaglutide is a prescription medication that is commonly used for the treatment of obesity and weight management. It is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that works by suppressing appetite, increasing satiety, and slowing gastric emptying. However, like all medications, there are certain acceptance and exclusionary criteria that must be met for a person to be eligible for semaglutide treatment. The acceptance criteria refer to the factors that make a person a suitable candidate for semaglutide, while the exclusionary criteria refer to the factors that make a person ineligible for the treatment. See below for BMI Doctors acceptance and exclusionary criteria for semaglutide-assisted medical weight loss in detail.
- Patients must be at least 18 years of age.
- Patients can not be pregnant or likely to become pregnant.
- Calculated BMI less than 27 is not qualified for this weight loss program according to FDA guidelines.
- For Calculated BMI greater than 26.9, Have you ever been diagnosed with any of these conditions (select all that apply)
- Diabetes I or II
- Diabetic retinopathy, a type of damage to the eye from diabetes
- Low blood sugar
- Disease of the gallbladder
- Acute inflammation of the pancreas
- Decreased kidney function
- Medullary thyroid cancer
- Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2
- Family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma
- Kidney disease with likely reduction in kidney function
If you answer yes to any of the above points 1 to 10, BMI Doctors will not be able to treat you as these conditions are contraindicated by the FDA for the GLP-1 Semaglutide medications we are prescribing. We appreciate your interest but would be unable to treat you at this time.
If your BMI is greater than 26.9 and none of the contraindications above apply, we would be able to on-board you pending a formal consultation with one of our board certified Doctors.
There are restrictions on who is or is not an appropriate candidate for therapy with Semaglutide injection
Patients with the following indications are NOT appropriate candidates for Semaglutide.
- Thyroid C-cell Tumors
- Acute Pancreatitis
- Acute Gallbladder Disease
- Hypoglycemia: Concomitant use with an insulin secretagogue or insulin may increase the risk of hypoglycemia, including severe hypoglycemia. Inform all patients of the risk of hypoglycemia and educate them on the signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia
- Acute Kidney Injury: Monitor renal function when initiating or escalating doses in patients reporting severe adverse gastrointestinal reactions or in those with renal impairment reporting severe adverse gastrointestinal reactions.
- Hypersensitivity: Anaphylactic reactions and angioedema
- Diabetic Retinopathy Complications in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes
- Contraindicated in personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or in patients with Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2
The most common adverse reactions, reported in greater than or equal to 5% of patients treated are:
nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, abdominal pain, headache, fatigue, dyspepsia, dizziness, abdominal distension, eructation, hypoglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes, flatulence, gastroenteritis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease
Recommended Storage:
- Store injection vials in the refrigerator from 2°C to 8°C (36°F to 46°F).
- If needed, prior to cap removal, the injection vial can be kept from 8°C to 30°C (46°F to 86°F) up to 28 days.
- Do not freeze injection solution.
- Protect from light.
- Discard any unused portion of injection solution 28 days after initial use, even if there is solution remaining in the vial.
Drug Interactions:
- There are no direct drug to drug interactions with Semaglutide and Metformin.
- There are drug to drug interactions with Semaglutide and Sulfonylureas or Insulin Secretagogues (hypoglycemia).
- Visit our semaglutide drug interactions page for more detail.
Before & After Photos of BMI Patients
