Endoscopic Bariatric Surgery Offers Opportunities For Medical Device Providers

It is estimated that by 2014, the weight loss market will be worth 586.3 billion dollars. Further, the United States is expected to be 43 percent of that market. However, to date, no weight loss method provides long-term weight loss without the potential of serious complications. So finding an effective long-term weight loss treatment is the goal of most of those in the weight loss industry.

Of course, the dearth of safe, effective weight loss treatments offers opportunities for medical device providers operating in the weight loss industry. This is especially true for that segment of the bariatric industry focusing on endoscopic bariatric surgery.

Indeed, there are companies working on medical devices for endoscopic bariatric surgery. One of the companies is BioEnterics. This company makes the Intragastric Balloon or BIB system. In this system, a balloon is filled with a saline solution after being placed in the patient's stomach. This balloon gives the patient a feeling of fullness. BioEnterics is based in Irvine, California.

Another company focusing on endoscopic bariatric weight loss devices is BaroNova Therapeutics, Inc, headquartered in Forster City, California. This company is working on a pill that is swallowed or placed in the stomach using an endoscope. The pill expands to make the user feel full.

Power Medical Interventions, Inc. of Longhorne, Pennsylvania, has made a stabling device that can be inserted into the stomach, using the mouth as the entry point. The device can be used to shrink the stomach. And GI Dynamics, a Lexington, Massachusetts company, has developed a sleeve that can be placed in the upper part of the small intestine to mimic the "bypass" part of gastric bypass surgery. The sleeve is called the EndoBarrier™.

Endoscopic surgical methods hold great potential for bariatric surgery. The surgery is less invasive, creating less trauma to the body. If some of the methods described above prove effective, it will be good for the weight loss industry. Further, the surgery could be less costly, enticing more persons who need the surgery to have the surgery. This increased number of persons seeking bariatric surgery would be a boon for bariatric surgery providers, and bariatric surgical medical device providers.
(Please leave a comment by clicking on the "COMMENTS" link at the lower right part of this blog post.)
--------------------------------------------

Tags: swot, environmental scanning, bariatric surgery, strategic management, bariatric marketing, bariatric strategy