Vagotomy

A vagotomy is a surgical procedure that is performed only in humans. It is resection of part of the vagus nerve.The operation was popular up until the mid-1990s as a way of treating peptic ulcer disease, and preventing its recurrence. It was thought that peptic ulcer disease was due to excess secretion of the acid environment in the stomach, or at least that peptic ulcer disease was made worse by hyperacidity. Vagotomy was a way to reduce the acidity of the stomach, by denervating the peptic cells that produce acid. This was done with the hope that it would treat or prevent peptic ulcers. It also had the effect of reducing or eliminating symptoms of gastro-esophageal reflux in those who suffered from it.The incidence of vagotomy decreased following the discovery by Barry Marshall and Robin Warren that Helicobacter pylori is responsible for most peptic ulcers. The first-line treatment for peptic ulcer disease, if due to H. pylori, is "triple therapy": 2 antibiotics and a proton pump inhibitor . However, in chronic ulceration or in gastric outlet obstruction there is still an important role for truncal vagotomy.A plain vagotomy is a very destructive procedure, since all the parasympathetic supply from the stomach to the left side of the transverse colon relies on the vagus nerves. The gut will still function without vagus supply, but less well.Vagotomy technique was therefore improved by restricting resection to only those branches that go to the stomach , and further by selecting only those branches that appear to supply peptic cells .Humans have two vagus nerves, whose fibres decussate and intermingle around the stomach. Accordingly, a vagotomy operates on both nerves simultaneously and in practise there is no need or way to make a distinction between them. (From the Wikpedia article Vagotomy.)

Download PDF containing detailed information.

Recent Publications on Vagotomy:
Short-term Outcomes of Roux-en-Y Stapled Anastomosis after Distal Gastrectomy for Gastric Adenocarcinoma. BACKGROUND: Since 2003, we have begun to perform gastrojejunostomy by...	12th November, 2009	Gastric Surgery Division, National Cancer Center Hospital, 5-1-1 Tsukiji,	J Gastrointest Surg. 2009 Nov 11. DOI Direct Link
Opening of ATP-sensitive Potassium Channel by Insulin in the Brain-induced Insulin Secretion in Wistar Rats. Cerebral insulin can regulate glucose homeostasis via activation of the...	6th November, 2009	Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University,	Horm Metab Res. 2009 Nov 4. DOI Direct Link
The Vagus Nerve and Nicotinic Receptors Involve Inhibition of HMGB1 Release and Early Pro-inflammatory Cytokines Function in Collagen-Induced Arthritis. OBJECTIVES: The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway, a vagus...	6th November, 2009	Department of Rheumatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 87	J Clin Immunol. 2009 Nov 5. DOI Direct Link
The Vagus Nerve Modulates CD4(+) T cell Activity. The vagus nerve has a counter-inflammatory role in a number of model...	6th November, 2009	The Brain-Body Institute and Departments of Medicine and Pathology and	Brain Behav Immun. 2009 Oct 31. DOI Direct Link
Cardiovascular Responses to Hypothalamic Arcuate Nucleus Stimulation in the Rat. Role of Sympathetic and Vagal Efferents. Experiments were carried out in urethane-anesthetized, artificially...	4th November, 2009	Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Medicine and Dentistry	Hypertension. 2009 Nov 2. DOI Direct Link
→View more research publications.

Press Releases About Vagotomy:
New Report Just Published: World Endoscopy Systems Market Report	7th July, 2009	Reportlinker	NEW YORK, July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com just added a new market research report to its catalogue. World Endoscopy Systems Market http://www.reportlinker.com/p0109885/World-Endoscopy

Vagotomy Patents:
US Patent No.	Title
6951882	Substituted 4-phenyl-[1,3]-dioxanes
7179787	Methods of using human Zven proteins
7184828	Method and system for spinal cord stimulation prior to and during a medical procedure
7184829	Method and system for nerve stimulation prior to and during a medical procedure
7225019	Method and system for nerve stimulation and cardiac sensing prior to and during a medical procedure
→View more patents.

BioPortfolio Ltd. offers e-mail and postal lists for Vagotomy scientists - we have details of around 1735 individuals working on Vagotomy .