Skip to main content

AAOS: Stopping GLP-1 RAs 14 Days Before Surgery Can Minimize Complications

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on March 11, 2025.

via HealthDay

TUESDAY, March 11, 2025 -- Stopping glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) treatment 14 days before total joint arthroplasty can minimize risks for complications, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, held from March 10 to 14 in San Diego.

Shivan N. Chokshi, M.D., from the University of Tennessee Campbell Clinic in Memphis, and colleagues examined the association between the time of last Ozempic dose and anesthesia complications in patients who underwent total hip or knee arthroplasty from January 2018 to January 2023. Ozempic users were classified based on when they stopped medication before surgery (482, 591, 680, 758, 777, and 706 at 30, 14, seven, five, three, and one day before surgery, respectively; 170 patients continued use through surgery); the control group included 206,005 patients without prior Ozempic use.

The researchers found that stopping Ozempic five days, three days, and one day prior to surgery was an independent risk factor for delayed emergence from anesthesia (odds ratios, 1.59, 1.84, and 2.23, respectively). Stopping seven days prior was a risk factor for aspiration pneumonitis (odds ratio, 1.29), with higher risks seen for stopping five days and one day prior (odds ratios, 2.74 and 2.74, respectively). Last Ozempic dose at seven days prior to surgery was identified as an independent risk factor for conversion to intubation in multivariate logistic regression (odds ratio, 1.39). Last Ozempic dose at five days, three days, and one day prior were independent risk factors for conversion to intubation (odds ratios, 2.09, 4.68, and 6.37, respectively). Patients who continued Ozempic through surgery had the highest risk for complications.

"To minimize risks of delayed emergence from anesthesia, aspiration, aspiration pneumonitis, and conversion to intubation, ceasing GLP-1 RA 14 days before surgery is optimal," the authors write.

Press Release

More Information

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Remote Perioperative Telemonitoring Beneficial After Cancer Surgery

THURSDAY, Sept. 25, 2025 -- Remote perioperative telemonitoring (RPM) improves postoperative functional recovery and symptoms among patients undergoing surgery for cancer...

Shunt Surgery Beneficial in Idiopathic Normal-Pressure Hydrocephalus

TUESDAY, Sept. 23, 2025 -- Shunt surgery significantly improves gait velocity at three months among patients with idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus with a response to...

Photorefractive Keratectomy Safe, Effective for Teenagers

TUESDAY, Sept. 23, 2025 -- Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) is safe and effective for teenagers, with visual outcomes comparable to or slightly better than in adults, according...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.