July 12 (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency (EMA)

said on Friday patients taking weight-loss drugs such as Novo

Nordisk's Wegovy should inform their doctor ahead of

surgery, due to the risk of respiratory complications

potentially associated with such drugs.

Weight-loss drugs, including Wegovy and Eli Lilly's ( LLY )

Zepbound and Mounjaro, belong to a class known as GLP-1 receptor

agonists that slow the process of emptying food contents from

the stomach, making users feel full for longer.

So a patient taking such drugs could end up with a stomach

full of food on an operating table, despite fasting the night

before surgery, which could lead to a rare complication of

stomach contents moving into the respiratory tract, potentially

causing pneumonia.

However, the regulator said it had not yet found a causal

link between the GLP-1 drugs and the complication, called

aspiration.

The EMA's drug safety committee said the product information

of weight-loss drugs will be updated to include a warning to

patients that they should inform their doctor if they are

scheduled to undergo surgery under anesthesia or deep sedation.