Local woman becomes weight loss pioneer

CHILLICOTHE — Jerri Ragland was tired of struggling with the pressure her weight was putting on her health and its effect on both her job and her time at home with family.

The 39-year-old Chillicothe resident has had major back surgery, suffers from a degenerative disease and has three herniations in her back, along with spinal stenosis — a narrowing of open spaces in the spine that can create pain when extra pressure is placed on the spinal cord and the nerves running along it.

“I have a lot going on back there, so the extra weight makes it harder,” Ragland said, referring to her work with animals in her job at North Fork Animal Clinic and the time she spends with her 6-year-old child.

The solution came the federal Food and Drug Administration when the agency in early August approved the Orbera intragastric balloon as a means to curb hunger in adult patients with a body mass index of between 30 and 40 who need a jump-start in efforts to slim down.

A week ago, Ragland became the first patient in Ohio to undergo the nonsurgical procedure, and she said she’s already seen a 10-pound weight loss.

“Right now, I have to make myself eat,” she said. “I want fluids — it’s really important to drink your fluids — but right now, I’m making myself eat high proteins, so I’ll grab a piece of chicken or a small amount of pork. I just have to remind myself to eat.”

Dr. Trace Curry, of Curry Weight Loss Center in Cincinnati, performed the 15-minute procedure, which he said begins with the patient being sedated and a scope taken of the stomach.

Then, a catheter is inserted via the esophagus into the stomach. The catheter holds a silicone balloon that once in place is inflated using a saline solution until the balloon is about the size of a grapefruit. As the catheter is withdrawn, the balloon self-seals.

Ragland said the procedure went smoothly to the point that after coming out of sedation, she jokingly told the doctor that she didn’t think he’d done anything.

The idea behind the procedure, which has been done elsewhere around the world but couldn’t be done in the U.S. without FDA approval, is that the balloon takes up space in the stomach, making the patient feel full much sooner and reducing the amount of food the patient feels like eating.

Ragland said in her first week after the procedure that it accomplishes its goal — even the once-beloved sweets and candy she used to crave draw little attention from her now.

“When I do eat — I try to eat three times a day and make myself — I’m just making sure I’m eating high protein, low-carb (foods),” she said. “I feel great. I’ve felt better in this past week than I have for quite a while.”

Her sister, Samantha Meadows, said the difference has been noticeable, both on the outside and within.

“I deal with weight issues, and before, I hated to hang out with her because she would say, ‘Hey, want to go to the bakery?’ She had real strong desires for that stuff,” Meadows said, laughing. “I’ve noticed that not just physically — the weight starting to come off of her — but the emotional changes and changes, I guess, physiologically or whatever from not having that sugar in her body. Not the grumpies. Not the shakes.”

The balloon will be removed after six months, with the next six months spent in periodic consultations with Curry’s staff and dietitians before Ragland will be on her own to maintain her progress. The thought is that she will have reprogrammed her system over that year toward smaller portion sizes.

Since it has only recently been approved by the FDA, the roughly $6,000 cost is not yet covered under insurance plans.

Curry said the procedure should not be a first step for people looking at weight loss for the first time. It is intended for people who have been unsuccessful in trying more conventional weight loss methods and who meet the BMI requirement of between 30 and 40.

For Ragland, the investment was worth it once she heard the statistic that for every pound you lose, you take about seven pounds of pressure off your body. For someone with back issues, that was a game-changer.

“That was the moment we were like, ‘That’s a done deal,’ ” she said.