Bariatric Bypass Gastric Surgery

IRVINE, Calif. (AP) - Allergan Inc., which makes Botox and sells surgical weight-loss devices, said Monday it will co-promote its Lap-Band product with health care products provider Covidien Ltd.

The Lap-Band is an adjustable gastric band, a device surgically implanted around the stomach to help severely obese patients lose weight by forcibly limiting food intake. The procedure is an alternative to more invasive gastric bypass surgery, commonly known as stomach stapling.

Under the multi-year agreement, which became effective Nov. 9, Covidien will co-promote Allergan's Lap-Band to bariatric and other surgeons in the United States. Pembroke, Bermuda-based Covidien makes medical devices and pharmaceutical products.

Covidien's sales representatives will help educate and train surgeons on the Lap-Band procedure, which costs roughly $12,000 to $20,000.

Allergan, Covidien to market Lap-Band

IRVINE, Calif. (AP) - Allergan Inc., (Nachrichten) which makes Botox and sells surgical weight-loss devices, said Monday it will co-promote its Lap-Band product with health care products provider Covidien Ltd (Nachrichten) .

Covidien's sales representatives will help educate and train surgeons on the Lap-Band procedure, which costs roughly $12,000 to $20,000.

REMINDER: ORLive Presents: Minimally Invasive Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass -- the Gold Standard of Weight-Loss Surgery

Weight-loss surgery is the first surgery PinnacleHealth is scheduled to host on the Internet over the next year. On Wednesday, November 7 at 6 pm, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, medical director of bariatric surgery at PinnacleHealth, will perform the gold standard of weight-loss surgery, Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass, at the PinnacleHealth Community Campus, on www.OR-Live.com. Since 1998, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, and his partners, Doctors Scot A. Currie and Matthew Davidson, have performed this surgery laparoscopically, reducing chance of infection, shortening hospital stay and improving recovery time.

.

Somerset Hospital offers weight-loss surgery

Teresa Matsko, Boswell, tried almost every known diet without much success."I was tired of yo-yo diets," she said. "I had GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), tendon problems, degenerative discs and sleep apnea. I've been trying to get weight-loss surgery for two years, but insurance denied it at first."
The 53-year-old housewife weighed 232 pounds in July when she underwent gastric bypass surgery at Somerset Hospital. She now weighs 182 and her goal is 150."I no longer need an oxygen tank at night and I don't have heartburn anymore," she said. "I look so different, when I went in for my three-month checkup, Dr. Pradhan didn't recognize me."Dr. Kumuda Pradhan performed the surgery. She was his first gastric bypass patient at Somerset Hospital, but he performed more than 120 at Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse, Wis., where he completed his fellowship in bariatric and advanced laparoscopic surgery.

dallasnews.com | Your Health Matters

Bariatric surgeon Wade N. Barker, M.D. and his experienced staff are committed to helping patients take control of their health and improve their lives through weight loss. For obese patients who have been unable to reach a healthy weight through diet and exercise, we offer two highly effective weight loss surgery options: LAPAROSCOPIC GASTRIC BYPASS surgery and LAP BAND® surgery.Both have helped innumerable men and women achievedramatic, long-term results[+more]

Since 1987, noted cornea specialist William A. Boothe, M.D., has brought the world into focus with more than 82,000 LASIK laser vision correction procedures. Dr. Boothe also continues to be the busiest IntraLASIK surgeon in the world, having now performed over 44,000 IntraLASIK procedures.

ORLive Presents: Minimally Invasive Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass -- the Gold Standard of Weight-Loss Surgery

Weight-loss surgery is the first surgery PinnacleHealth is scheduled to host on the Internet over the next year. On Wednesday, November 7 at 6 pm, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, medical director of bariatric surgery at PinnacleHealth, will perform the gold standard of weight-loss surgery, Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass, at the PinnacleHealth Community Campus, on www.OR-Live.com. Since 1998, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, and his partners, Doctors Scot A. Currie and Matthew Davidson, have performed this surgery laparoscopically, reducing chance of infection, shortening hospital stay and improving recovery time.

.

Suicides up after weight-loss surgery

Among people who have undergone so-called bariatric surgery for obesity, death rates are higher than seen among other people of the same age, new research shows. In particular, deaths due to suicide and coronary heart disease are higher than might be expected normally. The study looked at data for all Pennsylvania residents who underwent a bariatric operation such as stomach stapling or gastric bypass between 1995 and 2004. Deaths in these patients were compared with those seen in the general population. A total of 440 deaths were noted after 16 683 weight-loss procedures during the study period, Dr. Lewis H. Kuller, from the University of Pittsburgh, and colleagues report. Male gender and advancing age were both associated with increased death rates, according to the team's report in the Archives of Surgery.