LINX

Sorry - just read the preceding posts on the STRETTA -

I knew there had to be very valid and logical reasons why we had never read about it anywhere - nor heard of it nor had it recommended by a single true physician/gastroenterologist, website  or medical professional!

Obviously - the LINX device is the ONLY way to go - for a young, vital, active and otherwise very healthy 25 year old!

Thanks to everyone who submits true/validated info to honestly sort out and refute all the other misinformation out there!!

Downers Dame

 

My concern is why no current gastroenterologist in the past 15 months has even bothered to MENTION the Stretta to us as a valid / safe /operational alternative to LINX?

We will continue to work with the top Chicago gastroenterologists - and do lots more research - and ask lots more specific questions - before we proceed with any device - definitely.

Thank you!

Downers Dame

Try searching for Stretta on this site for some other positives on it. Get the facts first. There's a lot of "stuff" out there that's not accurate.

Bingoman,

When did you have the stretta done? Was it in the states?

I too have not heard of any Dr.'s performing it any more in the states.

As far as research goes......Bruce is one of the best "research guru's" there is, that's saying a lot because there are many well informed people on this forum. I personally would not have the stretta done on myself.

Doggbones

Doggbones--I had it done 4 months ago in the US. Took about a month to feel the effects as they kept me on pills for that time. I cut the dose by half every week and haven't taken one in 2 months.

I can only read the abstract to the study linked. It's confusing, because under methods, it states that before and after pH monitoring took place, yet under the Conclusion heading, is this: "The limitation of this study was reflux evaluation did not include impedance monitoring." This study doesn't prove that there is no scar tissue, only postulates an argument that GEJ fibrosis is not the source of reflux reduction.

The other take-away is that it was a very small study group, and since the paper was received by AJG in 2010, I'm assuming the study took place much earlier, perhaps 2009. It's difficult to extrapolate a subjective "significantly improved," words used in the abstract, to "works very well," as you noted.

I'm glad that it worked out well for you. I would be the first person to jump on board if this was a simple and effective means of managing this disease. But the fact that it has been FDA approved for twelve years, yet hardly anything can be found out about it, says to me that it is not done very frequently. If I knew nothing else about surgical procedures, this fact alone would have me ask myself, "Why?"

-Bruce

MHz is a measure of frequency, not a measure of power, like watt. I don't know how many watts the Stretta device uses, but it has to be enough to damage tissue.

I haven't read all 80 studies, so I don't dispute you in your assumption. I'm not saying this is the case here, but I am very skeptical when reading studies, until I find independent corroboration in different places. First on the list of suspicion is information, or links to information, provided on company literature or websites. (This applies to anything, not just medical procedures.) Quite often, large companies finance their own studies, and since a doctor's standing within the medical community is sometimes measured by the number of publications he has, some doctors will undertake projects with the "wink and a nod" that it has to be written to support the manufacturer...who is undoubtedly trying to get FDA approval. This happens ALL THE TIME with new medications, unfortunately.

Next on my list of things to consider with studies is the date published. Obviously, the FDA wouldn't approve something if it wasn't "safe and effective," but anything can become dangerous in inexperienced hands. If the Stretta isn't a commonly-done procedure, then any single doctor can't have a lot of experience with it. This is where the dates of studies comes into play. If none of the studies are recent, then this either says that doctors aren't comfortable doing it, or that there are better alternatives available.

-Bruce

Also, to the person that created their first post about the Stretta to which I responded.....I accidentally ignored them and I cannot see their posts. Anyone know how to correct this?

In one of the videos from the Linx conference, I remember one of the doctors commenting that if they were doing an HH repair, then they basically had to do all the dissection of tissue needed for a nissen, so it made more sense to just do a nissen in those cases than the Linx. But they didn't say if that was only for large HH repairs or any HH repair. Seems like they could still do a Linx in those cases, but there would be less undisturbed tissue to hold the Linx in place than if there was no dissection done for the HH repair.

bingoman
how are you doing? are you still off ppis? is your stretta still working? did you have any complications?

Great thanks!