Incisionless procedure gives bariatric patients second chance

INDIANAPOLIS – A new incisionless procedure, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last year, can help gastric bypass patients lose unwanted pounds they have regained since their initial weight-loss surgeries.

Bariatric surgeons at St. Francis Hospital & Health Centers are among the first in Indiana to offer StomaphyX™. The outpatient procedure uses a tube passed through the mouth – and no surgical incisions.

During the procedure, approximately 12 to 20 H-shaped, staple-like fasteners are placed strategically in the stomach to create pleats in the tissue and to reduce the size of the stomach’s pouch.

“StomaphyX™ recreates the patient’s smaller stomach, causing the patient to feel full quicker and experience further weight loss,” said Jonathan Mandelbaum, M.D., surgical co-director of the St. Francis Weight Loss Center. “This is currently the only endoscopic or non-surgical way to reduce the size of the stomach after gastric bypass surgery. It is far less risky than a surgical revision of gastric bypass.”

Mandelbaum said the key advantages of the precision include no incisions or scars, less pain, a lower rate of complications compared to the traditional revisional bariatric surgery and a quicker recovery.

Following the procedure, patients follow a traditional post-bariatric surgery diet, but have no physical activity restrictions.

Good candidates for StomaphyX™are those who have undergone gastric bypass for obesity, have regained some of the weight they had lost, are compliant with their diet, continue to exercise regularly and do not feel full early during meals, Mandelbaum said.

“The procedure can give patients a tool to help them achieve their weight-loss goal and prevent obesity-related problems. We still depend on patients being compliant with exercise and diet for this procedure to be successful,” Mandlebaum said.

The St. Francis Weight Loss Center, an American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence, also provides gastric bypass, Lap-BandTM and gastric sleeve procedures for the surgical management of obesity.
Contact the center by calling 317-782-7525, or visit StFrancisHospitals.org/weightloss.