Intragastric Balloon Treatment for Obesity

The first intragastric balloon was launched in the market 30 years ago. From then, different intragastric prosthesis have been presented and used worldwide. There are, now, one billion overweight/obese persons worldwide. Only some of those patients express the desire or are able to undergo surgical operation. At present there is no medical cure for obesity. Despite the numerous dietary treatments, the natural course of obesity is characterized by an ongoing and sometimes unstoppable weight gain. In patients with first degree obesity, the intragastric balloon interrupts the ongoing and inexorable weight gain, and improves the relevant co-morbidities. In super-obese patients, where there are numerous co-morbidities, the weight loss obtained with the balloon represents a chance to reduce the surgical and anesthesiologic complications deriving from bariatric surgery.