FDA Considering New Weapon In Fight Against Obesity
By John Ostapkovich
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The FDA has been asked to approve an implantable device to combat obesity.
The makers of V-Bloc Therapy for Weight Loss asked for federal approval this week of an device to be implanted near a major abdominal nerve.
Weight loss specialist Dr. Caroline Apovian says, "Electrodes that are placed around the Vagus nerve and they're hooked up to a port that sits under your skin and it sends intermittent signals blocking the Vagus nerve from transmitting to the brain. You feel full throughout the day much more quickly than before."
Dr. Apovian, of Boston Medical Center, who helped prepare the FDA presentation, says V-Bloc is not a magic bullet but it can achieve a 10 percent weight loss. She envisions combining it with diet, exercise and medications for greater loss. Bariatric surgery achieves the most weight loss but some patients don't want to go that route. She says one major advantage of V-Bloc is that it requires no change in diet. You eat what you want, just less of it.