People suffering from obesity could find a potentially effective solution for their health problem in a new weight loss pill - a stomach balloon that requires no surgery or procedure in order to be placed inside the body, HealthDay reported.
The stomach balloon, called Elipse, is attached to a thin catheter. The patient swallows the balloon, which is encased in a capsule. When the capsule reaches the stomach, it dissolves and releases the balloon, which is then filled with up to 15 ounces, or half a liter, of distilled water through the catheter. The catheter is then pulled out.
The device is "a procedureless gastric balloon. It works by filling the stomach, slowing digestion, and teaching portion control," said Elipse manufacturer Allurion Technologies.
The balloon will stay in the stomach for about four months, after which it will automatically deflate and pass out of the body through the stool. Common side effects include vomiting and nausea, which is also the same for other gastric balloons.
Elipse showed promise in the testing phase, as patients in a study involving 34 people from the Czech Republic and Greece lost about 22 pounds each - equivalent to an estimated 37 percent of their excess body weight.
However, the researchers emphasized that the stomach balloon is merely an aid to weight loss and not a cure in itself.
"Because patients get used to feeling full so much quicker with the device, they learn portion control and get used to eating less," study author Dr. Ram Chuttani, director of interventional gastroenterology and endoscopy at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, told HealthDay. "We anticipate that the improved eating habits patients develop will mean that a significant amount of the weight will stay off, even when the balloon is no longer in place."
Elipse targets patients with a BMI of 27 or more, unlike other stomach balloons that are meant for patients with a BMI of 35 or more. Dr. John Morton, chief of bariatric and minimally invasive surgery at Stanford University, California, said an early intervention could help overweight patients avert obesity.
"We know the risk for mortality, and disease starts to edge up with a BMI of around 30," Morton told HealthDay.
Elipse is not yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and it could take several years before it gets approved, NBC News reported.
The results of the study were presented Thursday during the Obesity Week conference, which was held in Los Angeles, Calif., from Nov. 2 to 5.
