You may be a good candidate for gastric ballooning system of weight loss surgery if you have Body Mass Index of more than 30 or are 40% above your ideal weight, do not want a surgical procedure, want a temporary (6 months max.) treatment solution to change your eating habits and lifestyle, are ready to accept temporary implant in the stomach, have no heartburn and do not have poorly stabilized diabetes type II.

Gastric balloon, which is a little silicon pouch, is introduced through the mouth in the patient's stomach endoscopically. The procedure is painless. The balloon is inflated using saline. The patient feels full due to its presence and food intake decreases leading to weight loss.

Placement times vary but it will usually take 20-30 minutes, after which the patient will be monitored by the physician for a short time and then may return home.

The extent of weight loss with the help of the balloon is around 15 to 25 kg. It depends on the level of adherence to the diet - smaller portion of meals and the type of diet you take. Wight loss after Gastric balloon mainly depends on diet changes and level of exercises. On an average, the patient can lose 50% or more of their excess weight.

Recovery after Intra Gastric Balloon is quick- you can go back from the hospital the same day or shall be kept overnight under observation to see how does your body react. Most patients tolerate the balloon well and only a small number feel uneasiness, nausea or discomfort for a couple of days which can be controlled with drugs. You can resume your daily activities within a week of the procedure.

Intra Gastric Balloon insertion is either done on a day care basis or a maximum of overnight stay is required. The removal of balloon is relatively much simpler and the patient would be discharged from the hospital in a couple of hours. A total of 3-4 days of stay in India would be required to avail gastric balloon surgery in India.