General Surgery

Surgeons at Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin are now offering a discounted, self-pay package for patients without insurance benefits for the LINX® Reflux Management System, or for patients with high insurance deductibles and those who don't want to spend weeks to months fighting with their insurance companies for benefits. Find more information on the attached flyer (PDF).

Minimally Invasive Foregut Surgeons in the Division of General Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin are proud to offer a novel, scarless procedure that restores swallowing function in some patients with achalasia, a rare condition where the esophagus is unable to move food into the stomach. Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is a state-of-the-art technique to treat patients who have achalasia. POEM is an incisionless procedure which utilizes endoscopy to perform a targeted myotomy of the circular muscle fibers of the lower esophagus. This allows food to pass more easily and helps patients eat more comfortably. Additionally, the POEM procedure is performed without any external incisions and as a result there are no surgical scars.

The POEM procedure provides a more minimally invasive approach to achalasia that can help patients recover more quickly than a traditional surgical approach (Heller myotomy).

The LINX® Reflux Management System

Surgeons in the GERD and Gastrointestinal Surgery Program are the first in the area to offer a brand new, innovative device designed to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) – the LINX® reflux management system. The LINX system is a small flexible band of interlinked titanium beads with magnetic cores designed to restore the body’s natural barrier to reflux in patients with GERD. Read more about the LINX Reflux Management System.

YouTube video showing laparoscopic surgery to implant a magnetic sphincter augmentation device (LINX)

"Heartburn hell: Woman finds relief with magnetic bead implant" (NBC Today Show 1/22/2015)