Medtronic Launches GastriSail™ Bariatric Surgery Device

Medtronic is now offering the GastriSail™ gastric positioning system, promising more consistent sleeve creation and greater procedural efficiency within the sleeve gastrectomy procedure, the most commonly performed weight loss procedure in the U.S.


During a sleeve gastrectomy procedure, surgeons use minimally invasive approaches to remove approximately two-thirds of the stomach to create a small sleeve-shaped pouch. By reducing stomach size the patient will feel full faster after eating a small amount of food in a single sitting.

Medtronic’s Minimally Invasive Therapies Group has developed the GastriSail system to combine the benefits of three devices into one. The device makes it possible for surgeons to consistently size and decompress the stomach pouch and test for leaks without removing and reinserting another device. With fewer insertions comes the a potentially lowered risk of irritating or injuring the esophagus during the procedure.

The GastriSail system can be used to help guide the surgeon’s staple lines to ensure consistent shape of the stomach pouch from procedure to procedure. Once the surgeon positions the GastriSail system in the stomach, the system’s unique LED lights illuminate through the stomach tissue allowing the surgeon to see a clear line delineating where the stomach should be dissected, stapled and divided.

The GastriSail system received U.S. FDA 510(k) clearance in February 2015 and is currently being launche in the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Medtronic says it will be available globally by the end of 2015.

Physician comments

“The GastriSail system provides enhanced visualization and improved consistency allowing for streamlined, auto-placement in the stomach,” said Amit Trivedi, MD, bariatric surgeon at Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, NJ, and co-developer of the GastriSail system. “Using the GastriSail system enables a more consistent procedure and greater efficiency, which can potentially change the patient experience.”

Company comments

“The GastriSail system is a first-of-its-kind in the bariatric industry, and demonstrates our continued commitment to fight obesity with specialized solutions that provide better patient outcomes and have the potential to increase adoption of this well-established procedure,” said Chris Barry, senior vice president and president of the Surgical Innovations business, Minimally Invasive Therapies Group at Medtronic. “Working very closely with Dr. Trivedi, we were able to develop the GastriSail system as a unique solution that promotes consistency of the sleeve, but also procedural efficiency.”

Source: Medtronic, plc

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