US 5,259,399 A · Device and method of causing weight loss using removable variable volume intragastric bladder

Abstract

A method and apparatus for causing weight loss in obese humans by occupying a segment of the stomach volume using a variable volume bladder filled with fluid. The bladder is inserted into the upper part of the stomach including the fundus through a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostony tube, which was non-surgically placed to create a permanent channel to the stomach. The inserted bladder is filled and emptied using a filling system for pumping fluid in and out of the bladder according to a predetermined scheme. The filling system comprises a reversible pump, a two-way valve connected to the filling tube, an electronic control means for automatically controlling the action of the filling system, and a battery. The electronic control means is connected to a plurality of sensors placed on the human body to detect digestion cycle and hemodynamic parameters. The electronic control means collects information detected by the sensors, governs the filling system according to the obtained information and predetermined operation scheme, and records times and volumes of the fluid transferred through the two-way valve.

Claims15

Dependent claims

A method of causing weight loss in obese humans by occupying a segment of the stomach volume using an inflated bladder, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) measuring the volume and location of the stomach including the fundus by radiological techniques,
(b) selecting a bladder contoured in size and shape to substantially occupy the fundus or the body of the stomach measurement,
(c) introducing by percutaneous endscopic techniques a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (P.E.G.) tube to establish access from the outside to the body of the stomach through the abdominal wall,
(d) inserting said bladder through said percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube into the stomach so the size and shape of said bladder, cooperating with the position of placement of said gastrostomy tube, maintains said bladder in the upper part of the stomach including the fundus, and
(e) filling and emptying said bladder with fluid repeatedly over time through a filling tube that extends through said gastrostomy tube, in the manner that said bladder when filled occupies a large portion of said stomach to cause a feeling of satiety, thereby to achieve decreased consumption of food by a patient, and said emptying of said bladder provides periods of reduced trauma to the stomach to promote the patient's health and feeling of well being, said bladder capable of being withdrawn from said stomach through said P.E. G. tube to enable inspection and replacement and to enable ready access to the lumen of the stomach through the abdominal wall.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Device and method of causing weight loss using removable variable volume intragastric bladder

Life of this patent

Device and method of causing weight loss using removable variable volume intragastric bladder

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims15