Bariatric surgery is opted by severely obese patients who have failed to achieve weight loss through drugs, diet therapy, and physical exercise. These surgeries ensure weight loss and patients enjoy a better quality of life as well as increased life expectancies.

On the other hand, moderately obese patients who are not eligible for surgeries prefer medical devices that are minimally invasive. Gadgets such as the gastric pace maker, intragastric balloon, and devices based on neurostimulation techniques are likely to become popular in the future. Due to the profusion of choices, it is vital to be aware of the various treatment options and choose the one that is most suited to a person’s family history of obesity and the degree of the disease.

Healthcare companies that have realized the immense potential of anti-obesity treatment therapies are investing in ongoing research activities that aid in the enhancement of these technologies to develop innovative treatment procedures.

“More numbers of focused molecular drug targets coupled with significant advances in drug discovery technologies are further kindling interest in the ability of therapeutic weight loss drugs,” explains Prabakar. “As a result, there are several new drugs in the developmental pipeline and the clinical trial stage.”

The increasing use of laproscopy in bariatric surgeries, such as the Lap-Band, enables surgeons to effortlessly perform a greater number of weight loss surgeries. Since bariatric surgery is a well-established modality for long-term weight control, researchers in this field are working on improving techniques to develop more efficient and minimally invasive weight loss procedures.

Contd on page 3.....