Pristyn Care, a healthcare service provider, on Thursday announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Allurion Technologies, in order to offer a weight-loss and obesity care platform.
Allurion has developed the world’s first and only procedureless swallowable gastric balloon.
According to the National Family Health Survey (2022), nearly 23% of men and 24% of women were found to be overweight (a body mass index of 25 or more) – a 4% increase for both genders in the past 5 years.
To combat this obesity epidemic in India, Pristyn Care, the leading healthcare service provider has entered into a strategic partnership with Allurion Technologies, in order to offer a holistic weight-loss and obesity care platform. Allurion has developed the world’s first and only procedureless swallowable gastric balloon, the company announced.
“In a 15-minute OPD visit, the patient swallows a vegan capsule that contains the gastric balloon. Once in the stomach, a catheter is used to inflate the balloon with 550 ml of liquid – no surgery, endoscopy or anaesthesia is required. A simple X-ray is used to ensure the balloon is in the right position. After placement, the balloon – roughly the size of a grapefruit – takes up space in the patient’s stomach, creating a feeling of fullness and reducing food intake. The balloon reduces feelings of hunger, and in approximately 16 weeks, it automatically deflates and passes out of the body naturally,” the company said in a statement.
With this partnership, Pristyn Care will go live with this treatment in 6 metro cities – Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune, which have close to 100 clinics and over 400 hospital tie-ups, it added. Currently, at least 20 doctors in these 6 cities have been trained and certified by Allurion. By year-end, Pristyn Care plans to treat 1000+ patients for this weight-loss procedure.
“We are delighted to join hands with Allurion as a strategic partner. This exclusive tie up will help us to introduce this new innovative technology for weight loss in the country. Currently, around 25,000 bariatric surgeries are done annually in the country and this is the only medical alternative to bariatric surgery. It’s one of the safest ways to lose weight and is CE approved and also by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation. We have also onboarded dieticians, nutritionists and fitness experts who will be working with the patients to help them train their body towards a better lifestyle and a healthier weight,” Dr Vaibhav Kapoor, Co-founder, Pristyn Care said in a statement.
According to the company, the Pristyn – Allurion Program comes with the Virtual Care Suite, which integrates the Allurion Mobile App
The software platform is powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning to allow care teams to interact with their patients – and their data.
“As someone of Indian origin, India is a special market for Allurion. It is part of my personal mission to bring our revolutionary technology to India to help end obesity and diabetes. Whether it is because they have a wedding coming up, have steadily put on weight due to a busy or stressful lifestyle, recently had a health scare, need to improve their fertility, or need to lose weight before an operation, the Allurion Program can be the answer for millions of patients throughout India,” Dr Shantanu Gaur, Founder and CEO of Allurion said in a statement.
To be eligible for the Allurion Program, the patients must have a BMI of at least 27 and be above 18 years of age. A more detailed medical history will be taken by Allurion-certified doctors, to understand if the Allurion Program is right for you, it announced.