Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is a newer type of weight-loss procedure. Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty reduces the size of your stomach using an endoscopic suturing device without the need for surgery. This procedure may be an option if you’re significantly overweight — a body mass index of 30 or more — and diet and exercise haven’t worked for you.
Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty leads to significant weight loss. It helps you lose weight by limiting how much you can eat. And the procedure is minimally invasive, reducing the risk of operative complications.
Like other weight-loss procedures, endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty requires commitment to a healthier lifestyle. You need to make permanent healthy changes to your diet and get regular exercise to help ensure the long-term success of endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty.
• Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is often an option for people who aren’t candidates for other bariatric surgeries.
• The procedure is available to people whose body mass index (BMI) is above 30 who haven’t been successful maintaining weight loss with other methods.
• Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty isn’t appropriate for anyone who has gastrointestinal bleeding, a hiatal hernia larger than 3 centimeters or who’s had prior stomach surgery.
• But endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty isn’t for everyone who is overweight. A screening process helps doctors see if the procedure might be beneficial for you. And you must be willing to commit to healthy lifestyle changes, regular medical follow-up and participate in behavioral therapy.
The ESG procedure is done using a device called an Overstitch; a device that is placed into the stomach through the mouth that enables us to place a number of sutures (stitches) inside the stomach to significantly reduce its capacity by up to 80%.
As the procedure requires about an hour to complete we do it under general anaesthetic for your comfort. However, unlike surgery, we do not need to make any incisions to access the abdominal cavity thus reducing the risk to you and enabling a faster recovery.
Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is done in the endoscopy unit as an outpatient procedure. General anesthesia is used for the procedure, so you’ll be unconscious.
The procedure is done using an endoscope, a flexible tube with a camera and an endoscopic suturing device attached. The endoscope is inserted down your throat into the stomach. The tiny camera allows the doctor operating the endoscope (endoscopist) to see and operate inside your stomach without making incisions in your abdomen.
Using the endoscope, the doctor places approximately 12 sutures in the stomach. The sutures change the structure of your stomach, leaving it shaped like a tube. This restricts the amount of calories your body absorbs.
The procedure takes about 90 minutes. After the endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty, you’ll awaken in a recovery room, where medical staff monitors you for any complications.
The majority of people leave go home the same day after recovering from sedation. Some people might require a short admission to the hospital for one day or less for observation after the procedure.
After the procedure, you generally won’t be allowed to eat for about eight hours. Then, you’ll be allowed to start a liquid diet, which you need to continue for at least two weeks. Over four weeks, you’ll move on to semi-solid foods, and then to a regular healthy diet.
You’ll also have medical checkups and meet with a nutritionist and psychologist frequently after your procedure.
