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Background: Obesity is a major risk factor for several chronic diseases. The BioEnterics Intragastric Balloon (BIB) is used worldwide as a short-term (6 months) treatment in morbid obese patients. However, removal of BIB past 6 months is a common occurrence in clinical practice often as a result of patient factors. The aim of the present Italian multicentre cohort study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the BIB left in situ for more than 6 months. Materials and methods: A total of eight Italian centres participated in the study. Participating centres received a standardised questionnaire designed to capture safety and efficacy data. Weight loss data, as well as date, and reason for removal of the BIB after 6 months were recorded. Adverse events, including mortality and complications, operators' subjective technical notes and findings, and difficulties during removal procedure were also collected. Results: Six hundred and eleven patients were included. In the majority of cases, patient extended BIB treatment due to satisfactory weight loss (44 %). At 6 months, all patients achieved a BMI statistically lower than the initial BMI ( p < 0.001). There was a non-significant trend towards greater BMIL % in patients who underwent removal up to 15 months versus the results achieved up to 6 months. No major complications were recorded. Conclusion: Extending the duration of BIB use up to 14 months safely maintains weight loss and satiety with greater results than that up to 6 months, without complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eating disorders are a group of conditions characterised by abnormal eating habits. Greater than 50 % of patients with eating disorders have an ‘eating disorder not otherwise specified’ (EDNOS). No specific tools exist to evaluate EDNOS, and patients are identified only with a diagnosis of exclusion from the other eating disorders. The BioEnterics® Intragastric Balloon (BIB®) is used worldwide as a short-term treatment option in obese patients. A new frequency score was used to evaluate the influence of double consecutive BIB® treatment compared with single BIB® treatment followed by diet on four categories of EDNOS (grazing, emotional eating, sweet-eating and after-dinner grazing). Methods: A prospective study allocated 50 obese patients (age range 25–35, BMI range 40.0–44.9) into two groups: BIB® (6 months) followed by diet therapy (7 months; group A ( N = 25)) and BIB® placement for 6 months followed by another BIB® for 6 months, with a 1-month interval between placement (group B ( N = 25)). Baseline demographics were similar across both groups. Results: At the time of removal of the first BIB® device, EDNOS scores in both groups were not significantly different, but decreased significantly from baseline. By the end of the study, all EDNOS scores were significantly lower in patients undergoing consecutive BIB®, compared with single BIB® followed by diet therapy. Conclusions: The placement of an intragastric balloon in obese patients allows for a reduction in the intensity of grazing, emotional eating, sweet-eating and after-dinner grazing. A more significant reduction in the EDNOS score was observed with two consecutive BIBs®. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]