A volume filling device for treatment of obesity is placed outside the stomach wall of the patient to reduce the inner volume of the stomach, thereby affecting the patient's appetite. By providing the volume filling device outside the stomach wall, contact with stomach acids is avoided, thereby increasing the life of the device.

The present invention relates to an artificial contractile device comprising at least one contractile element (1) comprising a flexible strip (4) extending in a longitudinal direction and a closure (6) for forming the contractile element (1) into a closed loop around a hollow body organ, the closure (6) being situated at a first extremity of the flexible strip (4). The contractile element is adapted to contract a hollow body organ, in such a way that said contractile element (1) may be in a resting position or in an activated position. The artificial contractile device further comprises a flexible transmission (3) comprising a tensioning element (31) being anchored at a first end (311) to a first anchoring point (A) on the flexible strip (4), said flexible transmission (3) being adapted to tighten the contractile element (1) formed in a closed loop around said hollow body organ upon application of a traction force at and end of the tensioning element (2031) by an actuator (7). The artificial contractile device also comprises a connector (5) adapted to connect the flexible transmission (3) to a said actuator (7), a second end (312) of said tensioning element (2031) being anchored in said connector (5).

A gastric restriction device for treating excessive weight or obesity in mammals. The gastric restriction devices includes a skirt having a left portion, a right portion, a top edge with a first indentation located at a center of the top edge, and a bottom edge with a second indentation located at a center of the bottom edge. The skirt has a narrow surface located between the first indentation and the second indentation and a broad surface formed from the left portion connecting to the right portion. The skirt is configured to envelop and fit a stomach of a mammal. The gastric restriction devices includes a first attachment device and a second attachment device. The second attachment device is adapted to engage the first attachment device so that the skirt envelops and fits the stomach of the mammal.

A plurality of structures that resiliently attract one another are provided for implanting in a patient around a body tissue structure of the patient. For example, the body tissue structure may be the esophagus, and the plurality of structures may be implanted in an annulus around the outside of the esophagus, the annulus being substantially coaxial with the esophagus. The attraction may be between annularly adjacent ones of the structures in the annulus, and it may be provided, for example, by magnets or springs. The array of structures is preferably self-limiting with respect to the smallest area that it can encompass, and this smallest area is preferably large enough to prevent the apparatus from applying excessive pressure to tissue passing through that area.

An apparatus for the treatment of acid reflux disease has an implantable movement restriction device adapted to be at least partly invaginated by a patient's stomach fundus wall. A substantial part of the outer surface of the movement restriction device is adapted to rest against the stomach wall without injuring the latter in a position between the patient's diaphragm and at least a portion of the lower part of the invaginated stomach fundus wall, such that movement of the cardiac notch of the patient's stomach towards the patient's diaphragm is restricted, to thereby prevent the cardia from sliding through the patient's diaphragm opening into the patient's thorax, so as to maintain the supporting pressure against the patient's cardia sphincter muscle exerted from the patient's abdomen. The movement restriction device has a size of at least 125 mm.sup.3 and a circumference of at least 15 mm.

An apparatus for treating reflux disease of a human patient. The apparatus comprising an implantable movement restriction device, having an outer surface that includes a biocompatible material. The movement restriction device is adapted to rest against and to be kept in place contacting the stomach fundus wall, without restricting food passage in the food passageway when implanted and in function, and without injuring the stomach fundus wall in a position between the patient's diaphragm and the cardia sphincter. The movement of the cardiac notch of the patient's stomach towards the patient's diaphragm is thereby restricted, when the movement restriction device is implanted, to thereby prevent the cardia from sliding through the patient's diaphragm opening into the patient's thorax. The movement restriction device is adapted to contact directly or indirectly the diaphragm muscle to prevent such sliding of the cardia through the patient's diaphragm, so as to maintain the supporting pressure against the patient's cardia sphincter muscle exerted from the patient's abdomen. The movement restriction device having a size, when implanted and in function such that the functional movement restriction device can be completely invaginated by the stomach fundus of the human patient, and of at least 125 mm.sup.3, and a circumference of at least 15 mm.

The invention relates to an intraluminar method of treating a reflux disease in a patient by implanting a device comprising an movement restriction device that, when implanted in a patient, fills a volume in the patient's abdomen that is close to and at least partially above the patient's cardia when the patient is in a standing position. The invention further relates to a method of restoring the location of the cardia in a patient suffering from a reflux disease and to an instrument suitable to use with intraluminar method and/or restoration method. Also disclosed are instruments treating a patient suffering hiatal hernia and providing a movement restriction device to be invaginated in the stomach fundus wall.

Disclosed are embodiments of an apparatus and system for performing a sleeve gastrectomy. The apparatus can include a bougie for insertion into an interior of a stomach, the bougie having a proximal bougie end and a distal bougie end, an inflation lumen having a proximal lumen end and a distal lumen end, the inflation lumen extending from the proximal bougie end through the distal bougie end, a fluid delivery system coupled with the proximal lumen end, the fluid delivery system being operably configured to deliver positive pressure in a predetermined positive pressure range into the stomach, and a monitor coupled with the proximal lumen end operably configured for the monitoring of pressure or volume within the stomach. The bougie can be operably configured to define a resection line for the sleeve gastrectomy when the predetermined positive pressure range is achieved within the stomach

A method of coordinating positioning signaling includes: identifying a first user equipment (UE) served by a base station and a second UE served by the base station, the base station being configured to send a base station positioning signal wirelessly at a plurality of base-station-transmission times; allocating first times to the first UE, for sending first UE positioning signals, and second times to the second UE, for sending second UE positioning signals, at least one of the first times being different from at least one of the second times; sending a first communication to cause the first UE to send at least a respective one of the first UE positioning signals at each of the first times; and sending a second communication to cause the second UE to send at least a respective one of the second UE positioning signals at each of the second times.

The invention relates surgical abdominal methods of treating obesity in a patient by implanting a volume filling device that, when implanted in a patient, reduces the food cavity in size by a volume substantially exceeding the volume of the volume filling device. Also disclosed is a laparoscopic instrument for providing a volume filling device to be invaginated in the stomach wall of a human patient to treat obesity.