A new obesity treatment is now being offered in North Texas.
The FDA-approved device uses a surgically-placed tube to drain a portion of the stomach contents after every meal.
Dr. Sachin S. Kukreja, general and bariatric surgeon at Minimally Invasive Surgical Associates/Texas Weight Loss Docs, is one of the first North Texas doctors to offer the tube to his bariatric treatment patients.
"There are different strokes for different folks. Some people are not comfortable with having part of their stomach removed, or they're not comfortable having their intestines rerouted, and this is just another tool in our tool box," Kukreja said.
The weight loss device, called AspireAssist, is meant for people who are moderately to severely obese.
The less invasive method removes 30 percent of food from the stomach, before the calories are absorbed into the body.
Here's how it works: a port is placed on the skin, which is secured to a tube inside the stomach.
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About 30 minutes after most meals, the patient opens the port, connects the device and siphons the undigested food from the stomach into the toilet.
The process takes about 10 minutes and is less invasive than bariatric surgery.
Mike Cederhag had the device implanted five years ago in Sweden and says he lost 100 pounds in the first year.
"If I chew my food, if I flush three times a day, I know statistically that I will lose between one and three pounds a week. Guaranteed weight loss, if you do what you're supposed to do," Cederhag said.
The key, he says, is chewing food well enough so that it can pass through the tube.
"Get an apple, chew it and you have to chew it fine enough to be able to put it through a straw, and that's how much you have to chew your food for it come out of the Aspire device," Kukreja said.
MORE: For more information, visit: www.aspirebariatrics.com.
