Wegovy® Online Prescription
Semaglutide (GLP-1 receptor agonist) · Self-pay (not covered by Japanese health insurance)
About Wegovy®
Wegovy® (generic: semaglutide) is a once-weekly subcutaneous injection developed by Novo Nordisk. It is a GLP-1 receptor agonist, approved in Japan as a treatment for obesity. The same active ingredient (semaglutide) is also marketed as Ozempic® for diabetes.
Mechanism:
- Suppresses appetite via brain satiety centers
- Delays gastric emptying for prolonged satiety
Clinical Evidence (from original literature)
The following is referenced from peer-reviewed medical literature, cited by our physician for medical information purposes. Individual results may vary.
STEP1 trial (Wilding JPH, et al. New England Journal of Medicine. 2021;384:989-1002):
- Adults with obesity or overweight, without diabetes
- 68-week trial of weekly semaglutide 2.4mg vs placebo
- Reported approximately 14.9% mean body weight reduction in the treatment group at week 68
Original paper: NEJM 2021;384:989-1002
SELECT trial (Lincoff AM, et al. New England Journal of Medicine. 2023;389:2221-2232):
- 17,604 adults with obesity/overweight (BMI ≥27), with preexisting cardiovascular disease, without diabetes
- Average follow-up: 39.8 months (~3.5 years)
- Reported hazard ratio of 0.80 (95% CI: 0.72-0.90) for major cardiovascular events in the treatment group
Original paper: NEJM 2023;389:2221-2232
⚠️ Side Effects & Safety Information
Wegovy is a prescription medication with side effects and contraindications. This safety information has equal importance to efficacy data.
Common side effects
- Gastrointestinal: nausea (most common), vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, dyspepsia
- Injection site reactions: redness, swelling, itching
- Other: headache, dizziness, fatigue, altered taste
Serious side effects
- Acute pancreatitis, cholecystitis, cholelithiasis
- Acute kidney injury (often due to severe dehydration from GI side effects)
- Hypoglycemia (when combined with diabetes medications)
- Severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis, angioedema)
Contraindications
- Hypersensitivity to semaglutide or any component
- Diabetic ketoacidosis, diabetic coma, type 1 diabetes
- Severe infection, surgery, or other emergency situations
Use with caution
- History of pancreatitis, gallstones, severe gastrointestinal disorders
- Personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN 2
- Renal impairment, hepatic impairment, heart failure
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding (or possibility)
📘 PMDA package insert (Japanese): https://www.pmda.go.jp/PmdaSearch/iyakuSearch/
More Information (Disease Awareness)
For general information about obesity as a medical condition (without product-specific content), please visit the disease awareness site provided by the manufacturer:
Pricing (Self-Pay)
Prices include tax. Minimum order: 1 box (2 pens). For 0.25mg, 1.7mg and 2.4mg, one pen covers one month (4 doses). Cool delivery (refrigerated) shipping fee applies.
Regulatory information — Wegovy® (semaglutide injection)
- 1. Approval status in Japan / off-label use
- Under Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act, semaglutide is approved for the indication of “diabetes”. Separately, semaglutide subcutaneous injection (product name: Wegovy®) is approved for the indication of obesity disease — limited to patients who have hypertension, dyslipidemia or type 2 diabetes, in whom diet therapy and exercise therapy have not produced a sufficient effect, and who fall under either of the following: a BMI of 27 kg/m2 or above together with two or more obesity-related health disorders, or a BMI of 35 kg/m2 or above. However, our clinic is not a facility that meets the requirements set out in the Guidelines for Optimal Use (MHLW, November 2023). Use for a therapeutic purpose other than the approved indication constitutes off-label use.
- 2. How we obtain this medication
- We purchase domestically approved medications from pharmaceutical wholesalers in Japan.
- 3. Whether an approved equivalent exists in Japan
- Semaglutide subcutaneous injection is itself the domestically approved product: it is approved in Japan as a treatment for obesity disease, under the conditions stated above. Our clinic does not meet the facility requirements of the Guidelines for Optimal Use (MHLW, November 2023), and provides this medication only as self-pay (private) treatment.
- 4. Safety information from other countries
- An injectable formulation of the same active ingredient is approved as a treatment for obesity disease by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as in Japan. However, use of this product for cosmetic, body-slimming or dieting purposes is not approved in other countries either, so serious risks may not have been identified.
- 5. Relief System for Sufferers from Adverse Drug Reactions
- If a serious adverse drug reaction occurs, it is outside the scope of Japan’s national Relief System for Sufferers from Adverse Drug Reactions (operated by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency, PMDA). Medications provided as self-pay (private) treatment fall outside insured medical care and may therefore fall outside this relief system; if an adverse reaction occurs, the relief system cannot be used. We explain adverse reactions and other risks fully in advance and begin treatment only after you have understood and agreed to them.
Clinic-wide note (applies to our self-pay obesity treatment as a whole, not only to this medication). Under Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act, tirzepatide, dapagliflozin and semaglutide are approved for the indication of “diabetes”. Their use for the purpose of obesity treatment as carried out at our clinic is not approved in Japan, and use for a therapeutic purpose other than diabetes constitutes off-label use. Semaglutide subcutaneous injection (product name: Wegovy®) is approved for the indication of obesity disease (Japanese: 肥満症) — limited to patients who have hypertension, dyslipidemia or type 2 diabetes, in whom diet therapy and exercise therapy have not produced a sufficient effect, and who fall under either of the following: a BMI of 27 kg/m2 or above together with two or more obesity-related health disorders, or a BMI of 35 kg/m2 or above. However, our clinic is not a facility that meets the requirements set out in the Guidelines for Optimal Use (MHLW, November 2023). Because self-pay (private) treatment uses medications outside insurance coverage, the cost is borne entirely by the patient and is higher than under insured care.
Prescription Decision
Wegovy is a prescription medication. We evaluate each patient individually based on BMI, medical history, comorbidities, concurrent medications, and pregnancy status. Prescription is not guaranteed by patient request alone.