Obesity in our patient population is on the rise, and with this comes increasing rates of associated medical complications such as diabetes mellitus, joint disease, sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Weight loss remains central to any treatment strategy for these conditions, and at least in the case of NAFLD may be the only successful treatment option. To schedule or for more information, please call 801-213-9797.
At the University of Utah, there are multiple options available for patients to assist in better weight management, including comprehensive bariatric surgical and medical programs. In addition, there is now a bariatric endoscopic program offering the use of intra-gastric balloons (pictured) for assisted weight loss. Intra-gastric balloons are silicone balloons that are endoscopically placed within the stomach and filled with saline. The balloons are left in place for a total of 6 months before removal, and the patients are followed for another 6 months thereafter. Throughout the 12 month program, patients are also followed regularly by a dietician and exercise physiologist for consistent reinforcement of comprehensive lifestyle modifications, which in turn are meant to be the basis for long-term, stable weight management strategies.
In a pivotal United States multi-center trial for the Orbera device (offered here at the University of Utah), patients receiving the device in addition to lifestyle intervention lost 10.7% of their total body weight at 6 months, compared to only 4.7% total body weight for patients receiving lifestyle interventions alone. Even at 2 years out from the time of device removal, a significant amount of baseline weight loss (>10%) can still be seen in over 40% of patients.
For those patients who are motivated to lose weight but just need a jump-start to better align them on a long-term path of improved health and lifestyle choices, a comprehensive bariatric endoscopic program maybe a worthwhile consideration.