June 6, 2014 – Beat Obesity

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ANCHOR LEAD:  CAN A NEW APPROACH HELP PEOPLE LOSE WEIGHT AND KEEP IT OFF? ELIZABETH TRACEY REPORTS

Treating obesity is a complex problem.  Now a new trial at Johns Hopkins already proven successful in an animal model, aims to reduce blood flow to an area of the stomach that produces a hormone known to be involved in the sensation of hunger called ghrelin.  Clifford Weiss, an interventional radiologist, describes the study.

WEISS: The trial is called the BEAT OBESITY trial, it actually stands for the bariatric embolization of arteries for the treatment of obesity. We have FDA approval for what’s called a phase I safety trial for a brand new, minimally invasive intervention to treat obesity.  The goal here is to place a small catheter into the artery that feeds the top of the stomach called the fundus, to embolize very precisely, and to actually cause this what I like to think of as ‘gentle ischemia’ thereby downregulating ghrelin significantly, but in parallel with that, prevent weight gain.   :32

Artery embolization for many other conditions is already in widespread clinical use. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.