GASTRIC BALLON

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[ General Information About Bariatric Surgery ]

The gastric balloon is a non surgical weight management treatment that involves passing a balloon through the patient’s mouth down to the stomach. In the hands of a specialist the procedure is done under mild or no sedation and takes between 10-20 minutes. Patients can leave the hospital after only a few hours, once the sedation has worn off. In many cases they can go back to work the following day.
Weight loss is achieved by the principle of not being able to take up as much food after the placement of the balloon.  Patients feel less hungry and are full more quickly. This experience in itself may influence the perspective people have on food. The stomach balloon should be used alongside a behavior change program, to improve results. It is not a quick fix solution.
The balloon remains in your stomach for 6 months. After 6 months, the balloon is removed in a procedure that is as straight forward as the placement was.

While not yet approved by the FDA the Intragastric balloon is approved in Australia, Canada, Mexico, India and several European and South American countries. The intragastric balloon may be used prior to another bariatric surgery in order to assist the patient to reach a weight which is suitable for surgery.  Its main use has been to downsize the severe morbid obesity prior to surgery, but it has also been used as a primary treatment for diet resistant obesity. The reports on the success rate are varied and confusing, but it appears that a small but significant number of patients will sustain a >10% weight loss after one year.(13)

Gastric Balloon in Germany

Or center for bariatric surgery is a leading institution with an established track record with this procedure. The bariatric surgeons are able to assess the risks and benefits of each procedure together with you and will, based on your personal requirements, suggest a procedure that is most suitable for you. Please contact us for more information.

References:

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4. Strychar I. Diet in the management of weight loss. CMAJ 2006 ;174 (1): 56-63
5. Dugan S. Part I. Bariatric surgery. AAOHN Journal
6. Schauer PR, Burguera B, Ikramuddin S, Cottam D, Gourash W, Hamad Get al. Effect of laparoscopic Roux-en Y gastric bypass on type 2 diabetes mellitus. Ann Surg 2003; 238:467–84.
7. Pories WJ. Bariatric Surgery: risks and rewards. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2008; 93(11):S89–S96
8. Sjöström L, Lindroos AK, Peltonen M, Torgerson J, Bouchard C, Carlsson B, Dahlgren S, Larsson B, Narbro K, Sjöström CD, Sullivan M, Wedel H. Lifestyle, diabetes, and cardiovascular risk factors 10 years after bariatric surgery. N Engl J Med 2004;351:2683–93.
9. Buchwald H.  International symposium on gastric banding. Supplement to Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases.2008. Cambridge, MA: Elsevier; 4:35;pp 71
10. Himpens J, Dapri G, Cadiere GB.A prospective randomized study between laparoscopic gastric banding and laparoscopic isolated sleeve gastrectomy: results after 1 and 3 years. Obes Surg 2006;16:1450–6.
11. Kreft JS, Montebelo J, Fogaca KC, Rasere I, Oliveira MR.Gastric bypass: post-operative complications in individuals with and without preoperative dietary guidance. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice2008;14:169–71