Often, people are who either didn't lose enough weight or have regained weight are desperately seeking help, but have not been taken seriously. Their voice often feels ignored as they are often referred to a nutritionist, or are left on their own means to try and lose weight, which simply doesn't produce any significant or lasting results. Unfortunately, we hear this all too often as patients seek us out searching for help. Since revision procedures can require highly specific expertise, it comes as no surprise that many practices choose to not perform revisions at all, or do them infrequently. Dr. Mehta specializes in diagnosing and fixing such bariatric surgery issues, and has been doing so for 20+ years. We routinely get patients that travel from other states and abroad to get help in complex cases. This level of expertise is learned over 2 decades of specializing & treating thousands of patients.
HAS YOUR STOMACH POUCH STRETCHED OUT PREVENTING WEIGHT LOSS, OR CAUSING WEIGHT GAIN?
For those who find themselves in the disheartening position of not achieving their desired weight loss or experiencing weight regain, the struggle is real, and often, their pleas for assistance go unheard. Too frequently, they are directed to nutritionists or left to navigate their weight loss journey alone, only to discover that conventional methods yield fleeting results at best. This unfortunate narrative echoes in our consultations with patients who turn to us in search of genuine help. Dr. Mehta offers hope with over two decades of expertise in revision surgeries, refining techniques to minimize invasiveness and maximize effectiveness. Among the common issues encountered, many individuals present with an enlarged stomach pouch following gastric bypass or sleeve procedures. While a multitude of treatments exist, not all deliver the desired outcomes.
THERE ARE A FEW TREATMENT OPTIONS... SOME BETTER THAN OTHERS:
Endoscopic stitching of the pouch:
Endoscopic stitching within the stomach pouch refers to inserting an endoscope through the mouth into the stomach and using a device to stitch the gastric sleeve or bypass pouch smaller. Although it seems promising to patients, this method often falls short, offering limited weight loss and transient results due to the inherent weakness of the stomach lining. The sutures often don't hold up long term, and the minimal weight that was lost is regained.
Laparoscopic Plication of gastric sleeve or gastric bypass pouch:
Our laparoscopic plication technique involves folding the stomach's full thickness wall inward, creating a substantially smaller pouch, surpassing the original surgery's dimensions if necessary. This meticulously modified approach has consistently demonstrated its efficacy in driving sustainable weight loss outcomes. Since the entire thickness of the stomach is folded inwards, the stitches last unlike the endoscopic suturing, and the weight loss is greater. With our laparoscopic approach, we use the same incisions you had during your initial surgery.
Switching to a different surgery: While this can be a good option in some cases, it's not the standard for all. There is a long list of options below. These need to be discussed with the patient and the right option is chosen to achieve the desired outcome. There's a difference between who's had weight loss surgery and is 40 pounds shy of reaching their goal weight verses someone who is 80 pounds away. They would very likely need different procedures for optimal outcomes.
Adding a gastric band to the gastric bypass:
This can be an option for someone who had a gastric bypass with sub-optimal outcome. The option to make the pouch smaller using our Plication technique, placing a gastric band over it, or both.