Novo Nordisk wins Dutch injunction against compounded semaglutide nasal spray
A Dutch court order against a compounded semaglutide nasal spray shows enforcement is reaching new dosage forms, and sprays have no approved dosing or bioavailability data.
Novo Nordisk has won a preliminary court injunction in the Netherlands against a compounded semaglutide nasal spray, pushing its enforcement campaign against unapproved forms of the drug into a new route of administration and a new jurisdiction [1]. The order is dated Aug. 5, 2026 [1].
A preliminary injunction is an early, temporary order issued while a case continues. The terms of the Dutch ruling — what the seller is barred from doing, how long the order lasts, and whether it will be challenged — have not been reported [1]. Neither the court nor the company that made the spray was identified [1].
Semaglutide is the molecule in Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus [1]. Compounded semaglutide is not an approved version of the drug, and Novo Nordisk has described its legal work in this area as patient-safety litigation [1]. The company says the Dutch action is part of a broader global push against unapproved semaglutide formulations [1].
The central detail in the case is about dosing. Nasal and sublingual semaglutide products have no approved dosing or bioavailability data anywhere in the world [1]. Bioavailability is a measure of how much of a drug reaches the bloodstream. Without an established measure for a spray, there is no reviewed dose for a nasal product and no established figure for how much semaglutide a spray delivers [1].
The case arrives during a difficult stretch for Novo Nordisk's GLP-1 business. The company's obesity market share has eroded to roughly 40% as Eli Lilly gained momentum, and Novo Nordisk has cut 9,000 positions under a savings plan announced in late 2025 [1]. Obesity care accounts for about 29% of company revenue and diabetes care about 64% [1]. Its oral Wegovy pill drew 5 million prescriptions after a January 2026 launch, and the company has won European Union approval for an oral Wegovy weight-loss pill [1].
Why it matters for patients
Compounded semaglutide is not an approved medicine, and nasal and sublingual versions have no approved dosing or bioavailability data anywhere in the world [1]. For someone using a spray, that means there is no reviewed basis for knowing what dose the product actually provides [1].
The order was issued in the Netherlands, and its reach beyond the parties in that case has not been reported [1]. Because it is a preliminary ruling in one country, it does not by itself change what compounded semaglutide is available to patients in the United States, and no U.S. action against a nasal semaglutide product has been reported [1].
The dispute also shows where manufacturer enforcement is heading. Earlier pressure over compounded semaglutide centered on other dosage forms and markets; this case moves the campaign to a nasal spray and to Dutch courts [1]. Nasal and sublingual products sit in a category where regulators have approved no dose at all, unlike the injectable and oral semaglutide products that carry approved labeling [1].
What happens next
The Dutch matter continues after the preliminary order. A preliminary injunction can be challenged or later replaced by a final ruling, and no hearing or trial date has been reported [1]. Whether Novo Nordisk seeks similar orders in other countries, or against other compounded dosage forms, has not been disclosed [1].
Sources
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