DOVER, Del.— A Delaware surgeon performed a complex stomach surgery last month intended to treat acid reflux without making any incisions.
Dr. Rahul Singh at Bayhealth Medical Center was the first surgeon in Delaware to perform the procedure, called fundoplication, which is intended to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease. Experts said that during the procedure, the upper part of the stomach is wrapped around the lower end of the esophagus and stitched into place where a valve is created to prevent reflux from the stomach going back up into the esophagus.
"This is truly a significant step forward for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease patients who can benefit from a procedure that is minimally invasive, dramatically reduces their pain, and shortens their recovery time," Singh said.
Surgeries to cure GERD are traditionally performed through an incision and can take patients at least a week to fully recover after two-to-three days of hospitalization but Singh said his patients, who underwent the minimally invasive fundoplication, were back to routine activities within days after surgery.
To perform the procedure, Singh inserted a special device through the mouth, down the esophagus, and into the stomach. Bayhealth said the surgery was completed successfully and that both patients were released without complications after one overnight hospitalization.
