Aspire Assist procedure (?)

horrifying and effed up at the highest levels. 

Am I understanding this correctly that it was only tested on about 110 people? No long term studies that I can see either. 

 

Was the lap band approved with such a small trial? It seems like a hasty FDA approval but maybe that is typical of how the FDA works. 

I saw that even on the Aspire website they call this nonsurgical.  It can be done under twilight sedation or (rarely they say) general anesthesia.  I clearly have a different working definition of "surgery" than Aspire. 

 

 

Im really curious if anyone here has this.   I'd love to hear a patients perspective.  

I found the FDA approval letter for the lap band, you can find it here.

Looks like the original investigational study submitted for FDA approval looked at 149 patients, with a promise to look at 845 patients in the following 10-year span.

As many of you said, this is absolutely "medically assisted bulimia".  It is so wrong on many levels: psychologically and likely physically. And I can't see how there could be long term success unless it is left in indefinitely?  And also what about the Yuck factor?  My daughter had a urostomy and an ileostomy due to cancer. It disgusted her to have to deal with them - this had got to have some similarities.

I think that in time, we'll see some type of device that can be implanted that will work...but we are not there yet...and I do not think this is it....or at least not it...but time will tell.

Time is the true test of all things weight loss surgery related.

Scott

This is absolutely reprehensible. I see no good from this.

This is a tool for those *****fuse to deal with their current food issues and has a high chance of creating new food issues as well. When I had a lapland I quickly learned how to eat around that tool. I learned that eating slider foods and drinking with my meals was a sure fire way to eat anything I pleased. After several years that became how I ate. I didn't want to get stuck so I ate soft foods and the restriction portion of the tool became useless. I feel like this tool has the high possibility of having people over eat, maybe even drink a lot to float or mix the food and then just drain off the unwanted food. So eat donuts, drink orange juice till your "full" enough to drain and then open it up and drain out your poor choices. If your've not purged enough of your donuts out, make sure and take a coke to the restroom with you and once you've guzzled that down that should be enough to drain out those bad choices. This feels like a tool that comes with the side effect of an eating disorder.

Yes... I can imagine they might discover it all too easy to eat and drain ice cream all day long.  I mean _ALL_ _DAY_ _LONG_. I imagine that ice cream (and maybe other "sliders") are pretty easy to aspire assist out.  Hello, addiction!

 

Almost all people who get to the point of needing bariatric surgery (myself included) have "food issues".   I'm not surprised there is a high patient satisfaction with this product (at least in the limited first year of study) because as a food abuser it sounds almost like a dream to get to eat and eat and eat and then empty your stomach before calories can be absorbed.  A dream, or a nightmare, depending on your perspective. ;)

 

This is just a mind-blowingly bad bad idea for someone with food issues.   It seems potential for exacerbating an eating disorder is HUGE...almost inevitable. 

 

One more plea for any lurking patients with Aspire Assist: 

I'm still looking for someone to speak from experience on this.  Surely someone on OH can defend the Aspire Assist and set us straight.  I want to hear directly from a patient.  I know all of these negative reactions could make you want to 'nope' on out of here, but please do speak up.  I totally get the appeal - as a food addict I totally totally get it.  And if a doctor you trust says it's a good idea, and that it's safer and less invasive than other weight loss surgeries, and you are feeling desperate for a solution... again I totally get it.  No judgement from me (not towards the patients anyway...).  But I want to hear from you!  Tell us the good, the bad, the ugly.  Educate us!  Please?  

O. M. G.

On the upside, your teeth won't rot out of your head, corroded by stomach acid from constant barfing.  That is the one and only advantage I can see here.

I'm with some of the rest of the responders -- how in the hell is this not surgical?  Do you swallow the damn thing and hope for the best?

I believe this came up once before on another thread, and this is absolutely, positively, no-barf bulimia.  This will, in my admittedly not-a-medical-professional-opinion, cause thousands upon thousands more problems than it will solve.

Back in the day, I would have loved this thing.  Having had a bout of anorexia in my early twenties (before I decided to try morbid obesity on for size, as it were) this would have been an answer to my feverish demented prayers.  Eat whatever you want, whenever you want, and still be thin.  I would never have had time for anything except eating and draining my stomach, but it would have freed up a lot of time from no longer having to calculate how many calories were in the glue on a postage stamp.  I actually spent considerable time on that, God help me.

The sad and sorry part of this is that there will be hundreds, if not thousands, of desperate morbidly-obese people lining up around the block to have this done.  I suspect that one of the "advantages" that will be touted for this is that it's cheaper than RNY or DS or VSG surgery, particularly for patients in the U.S. who have to self-pay or have insurance companies frantic to find a cheaper alternative.

When I had my surgery back in 2000, the lapband was experimental and just beginning to be tried.  It scared me then.  It terrifies me now, and I didn't even have the surgery.  I can't see how anybody would want to have this done, or any reputable medical professional who would advise doing it.

Wrong, wrong, wrong on so many levels.

 

 

I have a friend we both graduated nursing school this past May (2016). I personally choose the VGS, because I am not an emotional eater. I didn't have a love affair with it,just convenience and when I remembered to eat poor food and drink choices. Now soda- Heck yea! I broke that habit and haven't looked back.

Working in endo and assisting the doctor inserting peg,j and g tubes was horrible. 

Ann was fascinated and bells and whistles went off for her when this thing came recently. And she is seriously considering getting it. Despite all her medical knowledge. I personally think there will be complicated issues physically and mentally with this device.

Not having to deal with actually food dependency issues is the #1,reason she is getting it. "I can eat as much as I want and chew it well,then discard the bad feeling" WTFootlong! Noo that just sad,lazy and sorry. 

That's just MY personally thought and still my response. Yes I got sleeved on 10/28 and I dont want to be the "fat" nurse, but I am realistic. Chips candy,fast food, CAKE,chocolatey deliciousness,I gave up.

I think this device with its too easy approach to weight loss is a slap in the face for those who need peg tubes to live.

Assuming a person actually followed son plan and was able to tire themselves out from chewing and draining, lost weight. Once it is removed where is the actual behavior modification learned? Walking to drain? What is going to keep the weight off? 

Is it a jump start,temporary device or long term, permanent. 

Honestly,I haven't bothered to do more research BC I cld care less. If it makes a person happy and healthy GREAT! If they indulge create new bad habits-hey hunn, do you..Just making a long road longer and bumpier.