Has anyone dealt with do the heart benefits go away if i stop taking it??

LipidDoc_ATL said:

SUSTAIN-6 was the first CVOT to show cardiovascular benefit with semaglutide, relevant to cardiovascular risk.

I read this differently from LipidDoc_ATL, on substance rather than tone. The "earlier than weight loss explains" argument is weaker than this thread makes it sound. Blood pressure and inflammatory markers move fast and are downstream of early weight loss, so the mechanism is not as cleanly separable as the summaries imply.

CanadaChris said:

My reason for being on this is cardiovascular rather than cosmetic, which puts me in a small minority in most of these threads.

NNT calculation for cardiovascular risk clinical endpoints: NNT = 1/ARR (absolute risk reduction).

From SELECT trial: MACE at 39 months — 6.5% semaglutide vs 8.0% placebo. ARR = 1.5%. NNT = 67 over 3.3 years.

Compare to established therapies:

These NNTs are clinically meaningful and comparable to accepted cardiovascular interventions.

DataDave said:

The "earlier than weight loss explains" argument is weaker than this thread makes it sound.

Anti-inflammatory mechanisms of GLP-1 agonists and cardiovascular risk: beyond weight loss, GLP-1R activation directly suppresses NF-κB signaling, reduces NLRP3 inflammasome activation, and decreases monocyte/macrophage adhesion to endothelium[1].

Clinical correlates: hsCRP reduction of 30-60% (consistently seen across trials), reduced carotid intima-media thickness, and decreased coronary plaque inflammation on PET imaging.

These anti-inflammatory effects likely contribute to the cardiovascular benefit seen in SELECT — and may explain benefits beyond what weight loss alone would predict.

A narrower follow-up, since the general answer is now clear:

How long did you give it before you decided it was working?

lisa_labSD said:

Anti-inflammatory mechanisms of GLP-1 agonists and cardiovascular risk: beyond weight loss, GLP-1R activation directly suppresses NF-κB signaling,…

Lp(a) and cardiovascular risk: a nuance that matters. Unlike most lipid markers, Lp(a) is 90%+ genetically determined and doesn't really change with weight loss or GLP-1 therapy.

My Lp(a) has remained at 57 nmol/L across all time points. If yours is elevated (>50 nmol/L), you need additional risk mitigation strategies regardless of your GLP-1 response. Don't assume your medication is covering all cardiovascular risk factors.