A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans

Background/Objectives. Embolization of the left gastric artery (LGA), which preferentially supplies the gastric fundus, has been shown to produce weight loss in animal models. However, weight loss after LGA embolization in humans has not been previously established. The aim of this study was to eval...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Andrew J. Gunn, Rahmi Oklu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2014-01-01
Series:Journal of Obesity
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/185349
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850235542054109184
author Andrew J. Gunn
Rahmi Oklu
author_facet Andrew J. Gunn
Rahmi Oklu
author_sort Andrew J. Gunn
collection DOAJ
description Background/Objectives. Embolization of the left gastric artery (LGA), which preferentially supplies the gastric fundus, has been shown to produce weight loss in animal models. However, weight loss after LGA embolization in humans has not been previously established. The aim of this study was to evaluate postprocedural weight loss in patients following LGA embolization. Subjects/Methods. A retrospective analysis of the medical records of patients who underwent LGA embolization for upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding was performed. Postprocedural weight loss in this group was compared to a control group of patients who had undergone embolization of other arteries for upper GI bleeding. Results. The experimental group (N=19) lost an average of 7.3% of their initial body weight within three months of LGA embolization, which was significantly greater than the 2% weight loss observed in the control group (N=28) (P=0.006). No significant differences were seen between the groups in preprocedural body mass index (BMI), age, postprocedural care in the intensive care unit, history of malignancy, serum creatinine, or left ventricular ejection fraction. Conclusions. The current data suggest that body weight in humans may be modulated via LGA embolization. Continued research is warranted with prospective studies to further investigate this phenomenon.
format Article
id doaj-art-188f87bb2c94437d929ffb424aa80b2d
institution OA Journals
issn 2090-0708
2090-0716
language English
publishDate 2014-01-01
publisher Wiley
record_format Article
series Journal of Obesity
spelling doaj-art-188f87bb2c94437d929ffb424aa80b2d2025-08-20T02:02:13ZengWileyJournal of Obesity2090-07082090-07162014-01-01201410.1155/2014/185349185349A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in HumansAndrew J. Gunn0Rahmi Oklu1Department of Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit Street, FND 216, Boston, MA 02114, USADepartment of Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit Street, FND 216, Boston, MA 02114, USABackground/Objectives. Embolization of the left gastric artery (LGA), which preferentially supplies the gastric fundus, has been shown to produce weight loss in animal models. However, weight loss after LGA embolization in humans has not been previously established. The aim of this study was to evaluate postprocedural weight loss in patients following LGA embolization. Subjects/Methods. A retrospective analysis of the medical records of patients who underwent LGA embolization for upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding was performed. Postprocedural weight loss in this group was compared to a control group of patients who had undergone embolization of other arteries for upper GI bleeding. Results. The experimental group (N=19) lost an average of 7.3% of their initial body weight within three months of LGA embolization, which was significantly greater than the 2% weight loss observed in the control group (N=28) (P=0.006). No significant differences were seen between the groups in preprocedural body mass index (BMI), age, postprocedural care in the intensive care unit, history of malignancy, serum creatinine, or left ventricular ejection fraction. Conclusions. The current data suggest that body weight in humans may be modulated via LGA embolization. Continued research is warranted with prospective studies to further investigate this phenomenon.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/185349
spellingShingle Andrew J. Gunn
Rahmi Oklu
A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
Journal of Obesity
title A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
title_full A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
title_fullStr A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
title_full_unstemmed A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
title_short A Preliminary Observation of Weight Loss Following Left Gastric Artery Embolization in Humans
title_sort preliminary observation of weight loss following left gastric artery embolization in humans
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/185349
work_keys_str_mv AT andrewjgunn apreliminaryobservationofweightlossfollowingleftgastricarteryembolizationinhumans
AT rahmioklu apreliminaryobservationofweightlossfollowingleftgastricarteryembolizationinhumans
AT andrewjgunn preliminaryobservationofweightlossfollowingleftgastricarteryembolizationinhumans
AT rahmioklu preliminaryobservationofweightlossfollowingleftgastricarteryembolizationinhumans