Short-Term Efficacy of Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty Versus Intragastric Balloon Insertion for Obesity: An Indonesian, Single-Center, Retrospective Cohort Study

Introduction As a medical condition, obesity is a global public health concern that still has no satisfactory solution. Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) and intragastric balloon (IGB) are proven to be safe and efficient in producing weight loss. Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty has achieved significant success; therefore, it is timely to compare it to intragastric balloon therapy. Methods We retrospectively reviewed prospectively collected data for patients undergoing ESG or IGB. Weight was recorded at one week, one month, and three months post-procedure, and the percentage of total body weight loss (%TBWL) was calculated. Severe adverse events requiring hospital admission/procedure reversal were also recorded. We aim to see if one procedure is more efficient in providing weight loss in a short-term period. Results A total of 20 patients underwent ESG and 31 patients underwent IGB insertion. ESG patients showed a superior mean %TBWL at one-week post-procedure (%TBWL±SD = 4.87±1.88 vs 3.76±1.95). IGB patients showed a higher mean of %TBWL at one-month post-procedure (%TBWL±SD = 8.00±3.60 vs 7.25±3.29). Both procedures show similar %TBWL at three months post-procedure (%TBWL±SD ESG = 10.857±3.83 vs %TBWL ± SD IGB = 10.852±5.78). Conclusions We found that both the IGB insertion and ESG procedures result in clinically significant weight loss. However, the short-term weight loss between these two procedures is similar. Although similar, the number of adverse events in the IGB group is significantly higher than in the ESG group.