Not all weight loss surgeries must include an incision. Transoral weight loss surgery, also called transoral gastroplasty, is a new method of weight loss surgery currently under review by the FDA. Transoral surgery employs the use of an existing opening in the body to facilitate surgery. Instead of having an incision in the patient’s abdomen, surgeons practicing transoral surgery can pass a stapler through the patient’s mouth and throat and, once inside, can proceed with stapling the stomach.

Transoral weight loss surgery promises many benefits over traditional weight loss surgery.

Less recovery time: With transoral surgery, there is no incision to heal. Instead, patient can get up and move around almost normally within hours, although there may be some soreness.

Less risk of infection: Since there is no incision with transoral surgery, there is no risk of infection. There is still a very minimal risk of infection within the stomach itself.

Same weight loss benefits: Patients who have had transoral gastroplasty experience weight loss similar to that seen in laparoscopic weight loss surgery.

Although transoral gastroplasty is not yet approved by the FDA for use outside of clinical trials, other transoral bariatric surgeries such as the ROSE procedure for gastric bypass revision have been available for several months. Judging by the excellent results achieved with the ROSE procedure, it is likely that transoral gastroplasty will be an enormous step forward for bariatric surgery once approved by the FDA.