Botox gastric injections no obesity help

Gastric injections of botulinum toxin A (BTA) -- botox -- can delay gastric emptying, but does not make obese individuals feel more full, U.S. researchers say. Mark Topazian of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., said in attempts to help people lose weight, researchers have tested ways to slow gastric emptying -- movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine -- and increase satiation, or feeling full. Gastric injections of BTA have been reported to delay gastric emptying, increase satiation and reduce body weight, but with inconsistent results, Topazian said. Topazian compared the effects of injecting different doses of BTA, or a placebo, into the stomachs of 60 individuals with mild to moderate obesity in the gastric antral muscularis propria, guided by endoscopic ultrasound. Gastric emptying of solids was measured. Topazian and colleagues also measured participants' body weights every two weeks for 16 weeks along with satiation, calorie intake, gastrointestinal symptoms and psychological aspects of eating. There were no significant differences among groups in satiation volume, caloric intake, gastrointestinal symptoms, or psychological aspects of eating among groups, the study said. The study, scheduled to be published in the February issue of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, found although stomach injection of BTA slowed gastric emptying, it did not increase the feeling of fullness or lead to loss of body weight.