Upper Gastrointestinal surgery includes surgery for disorders of the oesophagus (food pipe), the stomach and the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine).
The main upper gastrointestinal conditions that require surgery include:
- Hiatus hernia
- Achalasia cardia
- Cancer of the oesophagus, stomach or duodenum
- Obesity
Upper gastrointestinal conditions present most commonly with the following symptoms:
- Heartburn
- Reflux
- Inability to swallow solids or liquids
- Upper abdominal pain
- Loss of weight and appetite
Commonly performed surgeries for the Upper GI tract include:
- Oesophagectomy – mainly for cancer of the oesophagus
- Gastrectomy – partial or total, usually required for cancer of the stomach
- Nissen’s fundoplication – for hiatus hernia
- Heller’s myotomy – for achalasia cardia
- Surgery for obesity – such as laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy or laparoscopic GI bypass
Mediclinic City Hospital has specialists with the expertise to perform all of the upper GI surgeries mentioned above. Our specialists are able to perform most upper GI surgeries through a minimally invasive approach using laparoscopic surgery. This helps patients to recover faster, spend fewer days in hospital and return earlier to work and normal function.
All patients with cancers of the upper GI tract are discussed at the gastrointestinal cancer multidisciplinary team (MDT) meeting every week at the Mediclinic City Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Centre. This is Dubai’s most advanced facility for cancer diagnosis and treatment, providing the only gated radiotherapy service in the private sector, along with medical and surgical oncology, radiology, nuclear medicine (diagnostic and therapeutic service including PET & SPECT CT, automated injector/FDG) and reference laboratory.
