Scientists have revealed a new medical procedure that could help maintain weight after stopping common slimming drugs, in a move that could represent a long-term alternative without the need for continued drug treatment.
These drugs have become widely popular, not only for treating diabetes, but also for helping with weight loss, with expectations of increased use as they are soon available in tablet form, after having been primarily used as injections for diabetic patients.
However, according to recent studies, the problem is that nearly two-thirds of the weight lost may return after stopping treatment, prompting researchers to look for alternative solutions to maintain the results.
A recent study shows that people who stop using GLP-1 weight loss drugs, such as Ozempic, Wegovi and Mongaro, often regain a large portion of the weight they lost, despite these drugs successfully achieving a loss of between 15% and 20% of body weight.
In this context, the researchers tested a new minimally invasive endoscopic procedure known as "duodenal mucosal resurfacing," which aims to induce changes in the first part of the small intestine.
This procedure relies on the use of directed heat to reprocess the inner layer of the duodenum, with the aim of stimulating the growth of new, healthier tissue and resetting the way the body deals with food at the metabolic level.
Researchers believe this change may help stabilize the new weight after it has been lost, by affecting hormones related to appetite and metabolism, which are the same hormones targeted by GLP-1 drugs.
The clinical trial involved 45 people who all lost at least 15% of their weight using the drug "Terzepatide" before stopping it, with 29 of them undergoing the new procedure, while 16 received a placebo.
Six months after stopping the medication, the results showed that the group that underwent the procedure regained significantly less weight compared to the other group; participants in the treatment group regained only about seven pounds (about 3.2 kilograms), maintaining more than 80% of their lost weight, while participants in the placebo group regained nearly 40% more weight.
The results also indicated that the difference between the two groups increases over time, which reinforces the likelihood that the effect of the procedure is long-lasting.
The researchers said the results appear encouraging, suggesting that the body may respond to this procedure in a sustained way that helps stabilize weight, rather than losing effectiveness over time.
The medical team confirms that the procedure is relatively safe, and the patient can return to normal activity in about one day, with difficulty in distinguishing between those who underwent real treatment and those who received a placebo due to the lack of symptoms after the operation.
The results from the first group of participants in the trial will be presented at Digestive Disease Week 2026.
