Get ready to say goodbye to chronic heart burn
Advanced treatment that fits your lifestyle
If you’re among the 20% of Americans who suffer from Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease, or GERD, you know the impact it can have on your life. Thanks to a weak valve between your stomach and esophagus, stomach acid flows backward, causing painful heartburn and even regurgitation. Reflux can also affect the throat, vocal cords, and lungs, causing coughing, wheezing, bronchitis, pneumonia, and asthma. Over time, these symptoms can lead to serious complications—even cancer.
Now, Community Hospital of San Bernardino offers a safe procedure to resolve the symptoms of GERD right where they start, at the top of the stomach. Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication, or TIF, is a minimally invasive procedure to treat severe and ongoing acid reflux with greater effectiveness and comfort than other options.
Take the next step
Talk to your doctor about whether you might be a candidate for TIF. For more information, or a referral to a gastroenterologist, please call us at (877) 841-5358.
What is Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication?
Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication (TIF) is a minimally invasive procedure to treat severe and ongoing acid reflux (heartburn) caused by a faulty valve that allows stomach acid to back up into the esophagus. The chronic discomfort of GERD is typically managed through diet restrictions and drug therapies or, in some cases, through laparoscopic surgery, to which TIF offers a more comfortable procedure with favorable clinical results.
How TIF works
- The TIF procedure is incisionless, leading to faster healing.
- The gastroenterologist guides the device to the stomach endoscopically, via a slender tube inserted through the mouth.
- Advanced camera and repair instruments on the device allow the surgeon to view and handle the top of the stomach.
- There, the surgeon makes tiny folds in the tissue to create a new and more secure valve to prevent continued stomach acid reflux.
Advantages of TIF
- Most patients treated with a TIF procedure can soon discontinue heartburn medications and resume a less restricted diet.
- Compared to more invasive surgery, TIF offers a more secure and lasting valve repair.
- TIF also offers less discomfort, healing time, scarring, or other potential complications often associated with surgical incisions.
TIF/cTIF for Acid Reflux
Acid reflux and the more progressive, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), describes the backward flow of stomach acid into the esophagus. This repeated exposure of stomach acid through the esophagus and into the throat damages the lining of the esophagus, and can ultimately lead to Barret’s esophagus - a condition which has the potential to lead to esophageal cancer.
Once diagnosed with Reflux or GERD, physicians commonly prescribe patients acid reduction medications, while these can help, they do not solve the problem. About 10% of patients experience no relief from medical therapy, and nearly 40% of patients taking these medications have breakthrough symptoms - these patients make the best candidates for more long-term surgical solutions, like TIF (transoral incisionless fundoplication).
The minimally invasive TIF procedure aims to augment your failing reflux barrier with a small, quarter size device implanted around the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES). TIF starts working the minute it is implanted and is designed to last a lifetime. The minimally invasive procedure requires no alteration to the stomach.
TIF is a procedure that adds a small, magnetic ring made of titanium beads, which open and close to let food down while preserving the patients’ ability to burp or vomit if needed. TIF is a minimally invasive laparoscopic procedure that doesn’t require any alteration to the stomach. It is usually an outpatient procedure. The material won’t affect airport security and is compatible with a 1.5 Tesla MRI.
At Community Hospital of San Bernardino, patient safety coupled with a positive patient experience is aligned with our core Dignity Health values.
- 85% of patients who chose TIF no longer needed daily Reflux medication
- 88% of patients reported that heartburn was eliminated after treatment
- 99% of patients no longer experienced uncomfortable regurgitation
- Patients also reported significant improvement with bloating and discomfort from gas
Take the next step
Talk to your doctor about whether you might be a candidate for TIF. For more information, or a referral to a gastroenterologist, please call us at (877) 841-5358.