Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.)Dec 10, 2025

Weight Loss and Safety of Semaglutide for Obesity in Telehealth Patients: Large Real-World Study

GLP-1 Therapies Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Jun 27, 2026

Abstract

Essence

Telehealth semaglutide users with week-68 weights lost an average 16.6% body weight, with no new safety signals reported.

Evidence

A retrospective deidentified EHR cohort analyzed 655 of 4,500 randomly sampled overweight or obesity patients who started semaglutide via telehealth and had a follow-up weight within 14 days of week 68, finding nausea/vomiting in 37.3% and constipation in 15.6%.

Caveat

Because analysis required a reported week-68 weight and had no untreated comparator, attrition and selection may overstate effectiveness.

Simplified

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess weight and safety outcomes in a large national cohort of patients with overweight and obesity treated with GLP-1 medications via telehealth.

METHODS: Data were obtained from deidentified EHRs for a random sample of 4500 patients who initiated semaglutide treatment via telehealth for overweight and obesity between December 1, 2022, and June 1, 2023. Outcomes and predictors of outcomes were analyzed for patients who reported a follow-up weight within ±14 days of week 68.

RESULTS: Of 655 patients (n = 445 female, n = 210 male), mean body weight reduction was -16.6% (SD 7.5%, 95% CI: -17.1% to -16.0%). Female sex was the only factor consistently associated with categorical weight loss, with significantly higher odds at ≥ 5% (OR 4.26, p < 0.001), ≥ 10% (OR 5.90, p < 0.001), and ≥ 20% (OR 2.51, p < 0.001). The most common adverse events were nausea/vomiting (37.3%) and constipation (15.6%); no new safety signals were observed.

CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest semaglutide treatment via telehealth can achieve trial-level weight loss with similar safety profiles, supporting telehealth as an evidence-based approach to medical weight management.