Earlier this year, WakeMed Cary Hospital celebrated an important milestone. Dr. Christopher McGowan, founder and Medical Director of True You Weight Loss in Cary, performed his 500th endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) procedure at the WakeMed Cary Hospital Advanced Gastrointestinal Center – making him the first and only physician in the country to achieve this milestone. Since then, he’s performed an additional 200 procedures, bringing his total to nearly 750.
Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty, commonly referred to as ESG, is a non-surgical, incisionless procedure that allows a gastroenterologist to use endoscopic suturing (stitches) to reduce the overall size of the stomach to promote weight loss. Offering comparable results to bariatric surgery with zero cutting, the ESG procedure lasts about 40 minutes, and patients can lose up to 100 pounds or more, or approximately 20 percent of their total body weight. WakeMed Cary Hospital was the first hospital in North Carolina to offer the ESG procedure in 2018. Today, True You Weight Loss and WakeMed Cary Hospital, together, are currently the only facilities that offer ESG throughout the state.
WakeMed Cary Hospital’s Advanced Gastrointestinal Center not only provides diagnostic and treatment for digestive diseases and esophageal conditions, but also specializes in minimally invasive procedures including ESG for weight loss.
“I am extremely proud of Dr. McGowan and the WakeMed Cary Hospital Advanced Gastrointestinal Center team for this accomplishment,” said Tom Gough, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of WakeMed Health & Hospitals. “Our vision to create a center that not only treats the entire digestive system, but provides the opportunity to do new, innovative procedures to benefit patients is certainly demonstrated by this milestone.”
Dr. McGowan is one of the few physicians in the nation who is triple-board-certified in internal medicine, gastroenterology, and obesity medicine. He is a world-renowned leader in endobariatrics, a new field of gastroenterology that aims to address the obesity epidemic.
“ESG is currently the most effective, non-surgical weight loss procedure available,” said Dr. McGowan. “ESG patients are back at work in two to three days with no long-term side effects. And there are so many off-the-scale victories – lower blood pressure, better blood sugar control, improved sleep apnea, and the list goes on. Patients are able to take control of their life and health without the burden or risk of surgery, and it’s truly life-changing for our patients.”
ESG is ideal for patients who have a BMI of at least 30 and have not been successful with diet and exercise alone. It is an alternative long-term weight loss solution for those who don’t want to undergo gastric bypass or those whose physical condition makes them ineligible for surgery.
About Cary Hospital Advanced Gastrointestinal Center
The Advanced Gastrointestinal Center at WakeMed Cary Hospital specializes in top to bottom care for your entire digestive system — from your esophagus to your colon — diagnosing and treating a variety of digestive diseases and disorders with sophisticated procedures addressing everything from acid reflux, swallowing difficulties and polyps to Crohn’s, cancers, minimally invasive weight loss and more.
About True You Weight Loss
Dr. Christopher McGowan and his team see patients virtually or in his Cary office at True You Weight Loss, the nation’s first and only dedicated endobariatric weight loss center, offering a comprehensive range of endobariatric procedures and support services.
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