Allurion is a new program to fight obesity. A treatment that uses an innovative gastric balloon, scientifically validated, and which has already won over more than 10,000 French patients. The details of Martin Ducret, doctor and journalist at Doctor’s Daily.
franceinfo: What is the Allurion program?
Martin Ducret: It’s a bit like a balloon placed in the stomach, it is filled with water which reduces the feeling of hunger. The specificity of this balloon is the way it is placed, it is folded into a capsule, swallowed like a large tablet, unfolds in the stomach, then it is filled with half a liter of water with a catheter, a small plastic tube.
It is introduced in less than 20 minutes by a medical specialist. In fact, it stays in the stomach for about 4 months, and is naturally evacuated through the digestive tract. That is to say that we no longer need to go to the operating theater to put it in place.
Interesting, but I’m guessing this program doesn’t end with the landing of this balloon?
No, fortunately. This ball is not miraculous. It is rather a kind of booster to make the patient lose weight. In addition to the balloon, the patient benefits from comprehensive care with appropriate medical and nutritional monitoring, before and for at least 6 months after balloon placement. The goal of this program is to change the patient’s eating and physical behaviors for life.
Who is affected by this program?
Adults who are overweight and moderately or severely obese. That is to say people with a body mass index, BMI, which is the ratio of weight to height, between 27 and 40 kg/m2.
But is this program really effective?
Yes, it is validated by many serious medical studies. These studies report that the weight loss, 4 months after the placement of the gastric balloon, is on average 15% of the total weight. That is to say that a person of 100 kg initially, will lose around 15kg.
These studies also reveal that 95% of this weight loss is maintained one year after the balloon is eliminated. So there is a long-term effect, and that’s what’s interesting about this program. Its main obstacle is that it is expensive and that it is not covered by Medicare. You have to pay between 3,500 and 4,500 euros to benefit from it.