Seth Lipka, MD, of the digestive diseases and nutrition division at the University of South Florida in Tampa, who presented the findings said that Stretta “cannot be recommended as an alternative to traditional medical or surgical therapies for” GERD, according to the report. The results of the study sheds light once again on the controversy surrounding the treatment.
A committee for the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, on the other hand, found that Stretta was an appropriate treatment for GERD patients with symptoms lasting more than six months who decline fundoplication.
Members of the SAGES committee say that the difference in conclusions is due to a difference in the data included as well as in which measures of benefit were analyzed. The president-elect of SAGES Brian J. Dunkin, MD, also said that Dr. Lipka’s warning against Stretta is misleading, according to the report.
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