Endoscopic and surgical treatment of obesity in Croatia

Abstract:

Croatia is the leading country in Europe in terms of the number of obese and overweight people. We are trying to find ways to positively influence the changes in the lifestyle of our citizens, primarily of their eating habits and the insufficient physical activity. Even though we use numerous increasingly effective drugs, many patients, primarily those with a body mass index (BMI) >35, require treatment with endoscopic and surgical techniques, which are still not sufficiently represented in clinical practice. Of the endoscopic methods, the intragastric balloon is most often used. The baloon is inserted in a procedure that lasts no longer than fifteen minutes and reduces the patient's body weight between 10 and 15% over the six months following the procedure. The most commonly used surgical methods, „sleeve“ gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass achieve even better and more lasting results than drug treatment and endoscopic techniques, and are also recommended for people with morbid obesity.

Key words:
bariatric surgery; endoscopic methods; intragastric balloon; obesity