Vagotomy Could Encourage Weight Loss

Cutting the vagus nerve could be a possible, less aggressive alternative for people afraid of bariatric surgery, or those not quite obese enough to qualify for it, recommends a new study.

Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF, USA) and the University of Rochester (NY, USA) examined the utility of laparoscopic truncal vagotomy in the treatment of morbid obesity in adults. Vagotomy was performed on 26 female and four male obese patients. The patients had an average body mass index (BMI) score of between 35 and 45.

The study found that 10 of the 11 patients who were one year past surgery responded to the procedure and that they lost an average of 18.4% of their excess body weight. The researchers stated that these results are in line with the results of older, ulcer treatment studies, which found about 20% excess weight loss. The patients suffered no serious side effects and went home hours later with little pain. The results were presented at the 24th annual meeting of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery, held during June 2007 in San Diego (CA, USA).

"By no means do I think this is a panacea,” said lead author Robert Lustig, M.D., a pediatric endocrinologist at UCSF. "But I think this will be a rational alternative for a cadre of patients that are sort of in the middle there. With as much obesity as we have in this country, that's a big middle.”

Vagotomy is the surgical division of fibers of the vagus nerve, usually used to diminish acid secretion of the stomach and control a duodenal ulcer. The frequency with which elective vagotomy is performed has decreased in the past 20 years as drugs have become increasingly effective in treating ulcers.


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University of California San Francisco
University of Rochester