STEER: Wegovy Significantly Reduces Heart Attack, Stroke Risk in Patients with Obesity

Wegovy (semaglutide) has displayed substantial superiority over tirzepatide in reducing risk of heart attack, stroke, or all-cause mortality in patients with overweight or obesity, according to results from the STEER study.1

Presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2025 in Madrid by parent company Novo Nordisk, STEER was a retrospective, observational real-world study, aiming to determine the efficacy of Wegovy 2.4 mg in lowering the risk of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in adults with established cardiovascular disease (CVD) with no prior history of diabetes.1

“In the STEER study, patients using Wegovy had greater cardiovascular improvements compared to tirzepatide, indicating that the same CV benefit cannot be generalized across other molecules in the GLP-1 or GIP/GLP-1 classes and may come specifically from the semaglutide molecule,” Anna Windle, PhD, senior vice president of clinical development, medical and regulatory affairs at Novo Nordisk, said in a statement.1

Wegovy first received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for this indication in March 2024. It was developed in response to the rapidly increasing worldwide prevalence of overweight and obesity, which has nearly tripled since the 1970s. Patients with obesity are also at an increased risk of comorbidities such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and stroke, among others. This also increases the risk of death due to cardiovascular complications.2

The study included people from the US Komodo Research database, including data from 2016 to 2025. For inclusion, participants had to be ≥45 years of age and have started Wegovy treatment or tirzepatide on or after May 13, 2022. Patients also had to have overweight or obesity and established CVD without diabetes.1

Ultimately, a total of 10,625 participants were included in each of the 2 treatment groups. Investigators used propensity scoring to match Wegovy users and tirzepatide users with similar characteristics. The main analysis included all patients who started therapy regardless of gaps, while a sensitivity analysis examined only those who exhibited no gaps lasting >30 consecutive days.1

The main analysis indicated a significant 29% heart attack, stroke, and all-cause mortality in patients taking Wegovy, compared to tirzepatide (average follow-up of 8.3 months for Wegovy and 8.6 months for tirzepatide). There were 56 (0.5%) cardiovascular events recorded in the Wegovy group and 83 (0.8%) in the tirzepatide group.1

Additionally, compared to tirzepatide, Wegovy displayed a 57% greater risk reduction for heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular-related death or all-cause death in patients with overweight or obesity and CVD with no gaps >30 days. There were 15 (0.1%) cardiovascular events recorded in the Wegovy group compared to 39 (0.4%) in tirzepatide. The average follow-up duration for Wegovy was 3.8 months versus 4.3 for the tirzepatide group.1

“Real-world studies, like STEER, provide us with important insights into how treatments may serve patients outside of controlled clinical trials as we continue to learn more about the benefits of Wegovy beyond weight management,” Windle said.1

References

1. Novo Nordisk. Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy cuts risk of heart attack, stroke, or death by 57% compared to tirzepatide in real-world study of people with obesity and cardiovascular disease. PR Newswire. August 31, 2025. Accessed September 4, 2025. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/novo-nordisks-wegovy-cuts-risk-of-heart-attack-stroke-or-death-by-57-compared-to-tirzepatide-in-real-world-study-of-people-with-obesity-and-cardiovascular-disease-302542590.html

2. Singh G, Krauthamer M, Bjalme-Evans M. Wegovy (semaglutide): a new weight loss drug for chronic weight management. J Investig Med. 2022;70(1):5-13. doi:10.1136/jim-2021-001952