Sleeve Gastric Surgeons

The Sleeve Gastrectomy procedure (also called vertical Gastrectomy, Greater Curvature Gastrectomy, Parietal Gastrectomy, Gastric Reduction and even Vertical Gastroplasty) is performed by approximately 15 surgeons worldwide. It was originally conceived of by Dr. Johnston in England (Magenstrasse and Mill operation) and has been further developed and utilized in the United States, Germany and Belgium. It generates weight loss by restricting the amount of food that can be eaten (removal of stomach or vertical gastrectomy) without any bypass of the intestines or malabsorption. The stomach pouch is usually made smaller than the pouch that Duodenal Switch patients have. Critics of this procedure state that while early results look promising, the lack of an intestinal bypass may lead to weight regain. They base their criticism on older data from gastroplasty procedures done in the 1970's and 80's. Basically, it is an improvement over prior gastroplasty procedures, which are rarely done due to problems related to the placement of staples, silastic rings and mesh around the stomach pouch. In addition to avoiding foreign bodies, the other advantage over the older procedures is that the excess stomach volume is removed, not left in place. This possibly eliminates most Ghrelin hormone production and helps to reduce the sensation of hunger that people have. Currently it is approved by some insurance companies, but may be considered investigational by others.