dr. edward phillips/surgeon "Toga surgery is a trans-oral...inside the stomach
It's called TOGA, or trans-oral gastroplasty. It involves surgeons putting a camera and a staple gun down a patient's esophagus and making a small sleeve inside the stomach. Large food takes longer to digest, eventually leading to weight loss in most patients.
dr. edward phillips/surgeon "The procedure takes about an hour...done as an outpatient.
It's weight-loss surgery with less recovery time and no scars. But some surgeons are more cautious.
dr. john sweeney/surgeon "I think it's really interesting...be successful long-term.
Restrictive operations like TOGA and laparoscopic banding, or "lap band," tend to wear out over time, which means weight gain for some patients. The TOGA procedure has done well in clinical trials, but experts say more long-term data is definitely needed.
NEW YORK AND TRI-STATE AREA NEWS
USEFUL LINKS:
