Non-surgical weight-loss treatment safe, effective

Those individuals who cannot undergo weight-loss surgery can successfully lose their weight from non-surgical treatments like endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG), new research has found.

Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty reduces the stomach size using an endoscopic suturing device without the need for surgery.

"For years, patients seeking weight-loss interventions had limited options because they could not tolerate or did not want surgery or it was not even an option for them," said Reem Z. Sharaiha, assistant professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York.

"Our research shows that ESG can be the treatment they've been looking for. It's less invasive than surgery and helps them reach their health goals," Sharaiha added.

The research demonstrated that ESG is safe and effective in helping patients lead healthier lives and should be considered as another tool available to clinicians and patients in the fight against obesity.

However, the study does not suggest that ESG will replace the two surgical treatments as weight-loss interventions.

"Instead, these results show that ESG is another possibility that patients and health-care providers should consider when discussing options," the paper presented at the Digestive Disease Week 2017 noted.

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