Is laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy superior to endoscopic intragastric balloon as a first stage procedure for super-obese patients ( BMI > or =50 )?
Patients undergoing a LSG showed a faster and greater weight loss than those using a BIB at 6 months. Moreover, LSG is a safe procedure, with reproducible results, in contrast to the BIB which was tolerated by 93% of patients. The results indicate that both mean weight loss and %EWL were better in the LSG group, and that BMI decreased substantially more in the LSG group as well. Although the BIB procedure shows efficacy in reducing weight, the LSG group does so faster and to a greater amount, thus suggesting that this may be a superior procedure as a first stage for super-obesity.
Treatment with MSCs enhanced survival and bacterial clearance in a mouse model of Gram-negative pneumonia. The bacterial clearance effect was due, in part, to the upregulation of lipocalin 2 production by MSCs.