Abu Dhabi’s main government hospital will begin to offer intragastric balloon surgery to tackle obesity in children as young as 11.
Gastroenterologist Dr Ahmad Jazzar, who initiated the programme, will start the surgery at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) after Ramadan.
The move marks the time the hospital will be offering such weight loss procedures to children and adolescents.
The procedure involves the insertion of a thin tube down the throat which is loaded with a balloon. It is placed into the stomach and filled with saline.
The balloon makes the patient feel fuller than they normally would and typically loss of about 10 to 15 per cent of body weight is seen over six months. It is usually removed after three to 12 months.
Before joining SKMC, Dr Jazzar performed over 500 intragastric balloon operations, with his youngest patient being an 11-year-old girl.
“What we care about is that the child is fully developed," he said.
The procedure itself does not have any significant side-effects, according to Dr Jazzar. In the first few days, however, there can be some nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.
Gastric balloons are usually only fitted in obese adults but a state-run hospital in Yorkshire in the UK ran trials for children several years ago.
Children weighing between 88kg and 127kg - about double the average weight of a child aged 13 to 16 - were eligible for the procedure there.
Recent studies suggest that about 34 per cent of children in the UAE are classified as being either obese or overweight. There are more than 41 million overweight or obese children worldwide, and it is estimated the epidemic will reach 70 million children by 2025.
Increasing rates of obesity in children would suggest an increase in adolescent weight loss procedures, but Dr Jazzar said that high prices get in the way. Intragastric balloons are not covered by insurance and can cost up to Dh15,000 at private hospitals.
In the US and in accordance with FDA regulations, adolescents must have a body mass index (BMI) of over 35 kg/m2 to qualify for a procedure such as this. Dr Jazzar said that as long as “the patient really needs it” then they can have the procedure done.
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While considered to be fairly safe with minor side effects, if the balloon is dislodged and passes into the gut, it can cause an obstruction that could lead to problems. In rare cases, the balloon could rupture.
“It is very rare for the balloon to rupture and usually happens if it is left too long. That is why we put a blue dye in the balloon so if it ruptures then their urine will turn blue and the patient would see and call their physician immediately to remove the balloon before it passes through the intestines,” Dr Jazzar said.
There are different types of intragastric balloons and they vary in how long they last in the body for, while some can be swallowed instead of being inserted by an endoscopy. All will be offered at SKMC.
“You chose what you want. There are balloons that last three months, six months and 12 months,” Dr Jazzar said.
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
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Director: Kushan Nandy
Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami
Three stars
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
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Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
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- Joan of Arc
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
Marathon results
Men:
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2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
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5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
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2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01
3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30
4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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