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Scientists have developed a new injection that may have the power to promote weight loss without surgery.
Known as bariatric arterial embolization, this minimally invasive weight loss procedure was designed by a team of Johns Hopkins University scientists.
The injection releases tiny beads into the stomach that help lower the body’s levels of ghrelin, one of the most important hormones involved in controlling hunger.
According to The Daily Mail, an early trial has found that the revolutionary injection is safe in helping severely obese people lose weight.
“Obesity is a highly prevalent, detrimental and costly disease in the US and abroad,” said Dr. Clifford Weiss, director of interventional radiology research at Johns Hopkins. “The interventions currently available to treat this condition are behavioural modifications, diet and exercise, medications and invasive surgery.”
“We’re excited about the possibility of adding bariatric arterial embolization as another tool for health care providers to offer patients in the effort to curb this epidemic,” he added.
Six women and one man, all between the ages of 31 and 59, signed up for the early trial, and each participant was considered severely obese.
For about six months, scientists tracked the participants’ weight, ghrelin levels, hunger, and satiety assessments.
Following the injection, all of the participants involved lost weight and experienced “dramatic hunger reduction levels.”
“These early results demonstrate that bariatric arterial embolization is safe and appears to be effective in helping patients lose a significant amount of weight in a short and intermediate term,” Dr. Weiss said. “Compared to a surgical gastric bypass procedure, bariatric arterial embolization is significantly less invasive and has a much shorter recovery time.”
Since the research is still in its early stages, larger studies are expected to take place to ensure that the injections are safe.
