Stretta & EndoCinch Procedures?

beekrock · 10-15-2007, 01:08 PM

Has anyone here ever had one of these procedures done? My reflux is ruining my life and I'm wondering if I may be a candidate for either one of these procedures.

I was officially diagnosed with a hiatal hernia 2 years ago and NOTHING has helped with my reflux. The Nexium that I take makes the reflux less acidic, but I still gag, burp, cough, clear my throat, and even throw up ALL THE TIME. It's to the point now where I've had to quit martial arts and wrestling and even bring down my intensity during normal weightlifting and cardio workouts.

lstek · 10-27-2007, 10:36 AM

I have just had an appointment at stanford for the same issue--nothing works--ppi's no help. I was told these procedures DO NOT work. There is hope for the new ELF/TIF procedure that was just approved by the FDA in the US....look it up. It may be of help, but it needs some testing ove the next year or so. I am about to try a drug called baclofen. It tries to change muscle funtion in the LES instead of reducing acid. It is the newest approach. we shall see.

4dad · 10-28-2007, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lstek

I have just had an appointment at stanford for the same issue--nothing works--ppi's no help. I was told these procedures DO NOT work. There is hope for the new ELF/TIF procedure that was just approved by the FDA in the US....look it up. It may be of help, but it needs some testing ove the next year or so. I am about to try a drug called baclofen. It tries to change muscle funtion in the LES instead of reducing acid. It is the newest approach. we shall see.

What is the ELF/TIF procedure? I tried to do a search on Google but nothing came up. I've never heard of baclofen but it sounds promising. Let us know how you do with it!

4dad · 10-28-2007, 11:16 PM

I read at EndoGastric Solutions, Inc. that EsophyX is FDA cleared and CE marked. I think this means we may start seeing more of this. I'm going to ask my doctor about it. I'm desperate for a solution. The PPI's are not working for me at all and I'm in constant pain and burning. I don't want the traditional surgery and I'm trying to hold out for less invasive procedures. This one looks very promising. I read on another board about someone who had this done and is thus far is doing very well and off all medication.

Ol'Line Rebel · 10-29-2007, 11:52 AM

Don't count on any of this stuff.

Many of these have been around a while and yet are not getting much greater results than the old fundoplication (which is not great).

You can read some personal experiences (1 or 2 even right now) and history of some of these things on certain other forums. Of course, I'm not allowed to dare post anything about them on this board, so you'll have to try searching for them yourselves.

The problem with the TIF is that it is brand new; some said it's been used "with success" in Europe, but many Europeans I've come in contact with on the other fora have no idea what it is! Some say it's just another version of EsoPhyx. In any case, beware of any procedure that is essentially new - sometimes data on limited attempts seems good, but reality is after many more, it's no better than the old.