Gastric plication is a relatively new bariatric surgery procedure that offers unique benefits to obesity and weight loss surgery patients. The procedure is not only safer but is also reversible, offering long-term opportunities for weight loss and nutritional support.

Gastric plication is a laparoscopic procedure, meaning minimally invasive bariatric surgery. This approach allows patients the opportunity to heal faster, reduce their risk of complications and benefit from smaller incisions. The gastric plication procedure reduces the amount of food that an individual can eat at one time. Considered a restrictive procedure, gastric plication reduces the size of the stomach, but without cutting, removing or stapling.

What Exactly, is Gastric Plication?

The gastric plication procedure reduces the size of the stomach without removing any of it. The larger outer edge bulge or side of the stomach is folded inward and sutured. This manipulation creates a banana-type shape for the stomach rather than its original oval shape.  All this is done without cutting the stomach, without the need for staples that may come loose and no removing any portion of the stomach.

Because the procedure is still relatively new, long-term effects and data are not yet known. Any surgical patient should know that any surgical procedure, no matter how small, may carry with it some risks.

The procedure is not yet widely available in the United States, (currently, the gastric plication procedure is undergoing clinical trials in the US) and patients who would like to undergo gastric plication in the US are required to pay for it themselves, as medical insurance carriers have not yet added it to their list of approved procedures. Gastric plication is available, and has been performed successfully, in other areas of the world.

An important benefit of this type of procedure is that it doesn't interfere or affect the stomach's ability to absorb nutrients, as other bariatric and obesity surgery procedures often do. During the gastric plication procedure, the small intestine is left completely alone, which offers continued normal function of the stomach and small intestine during the digestive process. Because of this, long-term health and wellness following the procedure is enhanced, and patients don't need to worry about poor nutrient absorption, or the need to take numerous nutritional supplements.

Dr. Jorge Maytorena of Diabesity Surgery in Mexicali, Baja California, states, "The best thing about gastric plication is that it's reversible. Patients learn to change their dietary and eating habits and lifestyle gradually. After goals are achieved and new habits are formed, patients can opt for their stomach to be returned to its original state. This is especially beneficial to younger patients.”

Gastric Plication Offers Distinct Advantages

Additional advantages to gastric plication surgery include but are not limited to:

• Risk of surgical complications are reduced, especially when compared to procedures like gastric sleeve surgery.
• No foreign objects are used (such as staples, rings, or tubes) so there is no risk of failure, infection or complications caused by foreign bodies in or around the stomach.
• Gastric plication has no contraindications against pregnancy. A woman who wants to get pregnant and has received a gastric plication procedure doesn't have to worry about nutritional absorption of foods in her diet.
• Gastric plication is a lower-cost form of bariatric surgery.
• Because gastric plication is minimally invasive and does not involve any cutting into or removal of any portion of the stomach, recuperation time is shorter than with other forms of bariatric surgery, including gastric bypass or gastric sleeve procedures.

Patients feel better about gastric plication because it's not permanent and can be reversed at any time. For more information regarding gastric plication surgery, visit PlacidWay.com and view Dr. Maytorena's facility profile, qualifications, treatments and prices.

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