Novo Nordisk A/S: Ozempic® reduces the risk of heart attack, stroke and death by 23% compared to dulaglutide in the first head-to-head real-world study

• Ozempic^® (once-weekly injectable semaglutide) was associated with a 23% reduced risk of heart attack, stroke and death in people with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease on Medicare versus dulaglutide¹
• Data also highlighted Ozempic^® was associated with a 26% lower risk of death versus dulaglutide¹
• This study is the first to directly compare these glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) medications in everyday real-life use. It fills a significant gap in understanding their effects on heart health in older people at high risk, which could help support informed treatment decisions and health policies.¹

Bagsværd, Denmark, 18 September 2025 – Novo Nordisk today announced results from the REACH real-world study, which demonstrated that compared to dulaglutide, Ozempic^® (once-weekly injectable semaglutide) was associated with a reduced risk of major adverse cardiovascular events such as a heart attack or stroke by 23%¹. The data span nearly 60,000 US Medicare patients (aged ≥66 years) living with type 2 diabetes, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) – a condition where fatty deposits build up in blood vessels, reducing blood flow and increasing the risk of heart attacks, strokes and related problems – and multiple health conditions². The results were presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) 2025 Annual Meeting on 15–19 September in Vienna, Austria¹.

“As we age, the risk of experiencing a heart attack, stroke or dying from a cardiovascular event increases. At the same time, there are limited clinical data for people living with diabetes and cardiovascular disease aged 66 years or older. These data, showing a 23% risk reduction of a heart attack, stroke and death, fill an important gap and reinforce the well-established clinical evidence of semaglutide,” said Filip Krag Knop, senior vice president and incoming chief medical officer at Novo Nordisk. “This is great news for older patients as well as healthcare professionals, as these results build on the importance of our randomised clinical trial data assessing the effectiveness of treatments in a real-life setting. This also supports what we already know from our clinical development programmes that not all GLP-1 RAs are the same.”

Beyond these essential benefits, once-weekly semaglutide was also associated with a 25% risk reduction of heart attack, stroke, hospitalisation for unstable angina or heart failure, and death from any cause (five-point MACE)¹.

Ozempic^® is the only GLP-1 RA that has proven risk reduction of cardiovascular and kidney events in people with type 2 diabetes^3-6. These results provide the first direct comparison of cardiovascular outcomes between Ozempic^® and dulaglutide in US Medicare beneficiaries and add to the body of evidence for Ozempic^®.

About REACH
REACH is a comprehensive series of studies assessing the cardiovascular disease-related outcomes of the once-weekly GLP-1 RA class, including semaglutide, compared to glucose-lowering therapies such as DPP4 inhibitors, SGLT2 inhibitors and others. It also includes within-class comparisons of GLP-1 RAs from multiple administrative claims and electronic health record databases.

The study presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) 2025 Annual Meeting is a real-world evidence analysis evaluating cardiovascular risk reduction with GLP-1 RAs – semaglutide and dulaglutide – in people with type 2 diabetes and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). This study draws from Medicare fee-for-service claims data, using a target-trial emulation framework, including 58,336 matched patients (29,168 patients in each treatment group) aged ≥66 years with type 2 diabetes and ASCVD who initiated once-weekly semaglutide or dulaglutide. Direct cardiovascular outcome comparisons between GLP-1 RAs are lacking. These results address a critical gap for insights, particularly in an older Medicare population with multiple comorbidities underrepresented in randomised clinical trials.

About Ozempic^®
Ozempic^® (semaglutide) injection 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1.0 mg or 2.0 mg is a once-weekly GLP-1 RA indicated, along with diet and exercise, to improve blood sugar (glucose) in adults with type 2 diabetes and to reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke or death in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus with known heart disease. Ozempic^® is the only GLP-1 RA indicated to reduce the risk of worsening kidney disease and risk of death from cardiovascular events in adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease. Ozempic^® is currently marketed in 72 countries, and 7 million people with type 2 diabetes are currently being treated with Ozempic^® worldwide.

Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark. Our purpose is to drive change to defeat serious chronic diseases built upon our heritage in diabetes. We do so by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to our medicines, and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease. Novo Nordisk employs about 78,400 people in 80 countries and markets its products in around 170 countries. For more information, visit novonordisk.com, Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Contacts for further information

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References
1.      Tan M, et al. Late-breaking oral presentation presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) 2025; Sep 15-19 2025; Vienna, Austria.
2.      Dai D, et al. Cancer Control. 2022;29:10732748221140691.
3.      Marso SP, et al. N Engl J Med. 2016;375:1834-1844.
4.      Perkovic V, et al. N Engl J Med. 2024;391:109-121.
5.      Ozempic^® (once-weekly semaglutide): US Prescribing Information. 2025 [online]. Available at: https://www.novo-pi.com/ozempic.pdf Last accessed: September 2025.
6.      EMA. Ozempic^® (once-weekly semaglutide) Summary of Product Characteristics. 2025 [online]. Available at: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/ozempic. Last accessed: September 2025.

Attachment

• PR250918-EASD-REACH