Some treatments for obesity can be fatal.
'14.08.2017'
Source: The Washington Post
In the US, 5 is already dead after an FDA-approved obesity treatment, which places a silicone balloon in the stomach. Reports about it The Washington Post.
Already, 5 people have died after balloon gastro-shunting in the treatment of obesity. The specificity of the operation lies in the fact that a specially inflated balloon is inserted into the patient's stomach, which reduces its volume. After the ball occupies a significant part of the stomach, its fullness decreases. At the same time, the appetite decreases, and the person begins to lose weight noticeably.
Very often, young women who seek to get married resort to this method. In this case, a ball of water does not necessarily hold in the stomach forever. Once a woman achieves significant results in the fight against obesity, the ball can be removed to avoid any side effects.
Another reason why women decide on this method of losing weight, is its non-invasive. To install the balloon no cuts are required, it is implanted into the abdomen with the help of an endoscope, and only then it is pumped with water. Usually this ball contains from 350 to 400 ml of fluid, but if the patient feels nauseous, the amount of fluid decreases.
This method was patented by the FDA back in the 2015 year. And already this year, the Food and Drug Administration announced that special devices for treating obesity may pose a threat. At the moment, it has not yet been proved what exactly caused the death of the patients - the cylinders themselves or the postoperative complications.
However, the FDA warns doctors about the need for more careful control over patients who receive obesity treatment in the form of implantation of these balls.
Three out of five patients died within three days after surgery, although it was thought that these operations are not part of a potential risk zone. Two more patients died within a month after surgery.
Four patients used balloon systems Orbera Intragastric Balloon Systemmanufactured by Apollo Endo Surgery. They were also patented in 2015. These cylinders are filled with saline and set in the stomach. Another patient received a balloon ReShape Integrated Dual Balloon Systemreleased by the company ReShape Medical Inc.
Representatives of the manufacturer of these cylinders stated that since its entry into the market, more than 220 000 successful operations have been carried out in 80 countries. The company emphasizes that their product helps obesity victims lose weight three times more successfully and better than with physical exertion and diets.
At the cylinder ReShape Medical somewhat different specifics - it is inserted into the patient's stomach through the throat, which avoids surgical scars. FDA officials warn that people who have gone through gastrointestinal surgery or who are unable to maintain special diets and other weight loss programs should not use these devices.
Endosurgery Apollo also reported that over the past 11 years, from January 2006 of the year to the last year, 21 deaths from 277 000 cylinders installed have been reported Orberadistributed over this period of time. This is less than 0,01%.
"Patient safety is a key priority in everything we do in endosurgery Apolloand we take our product-related adverse event reporting obligations very seriously, ”CEO Todd Newton said in a statement.
