What will happen during GERD surgery?

Fundoplication involves wrapping a part of the stomach around the base of the esophagus and tightening it with stitches to reinforce the valve and keep stomach acid where it belongs. If you’re having laparoscopic GERD surgery, your surgeon will make small incisions in your abdomen, one of which is for a tiny video camera through which the surgeon will view the procedure on a monitor. Tools are inserted through the other incisions to perform the operation, and your incisions will be sutured.

If you’re having open GERD surgery, your surgeon will make one larger incision in your abdomen, pull back muscle and tissue, and perform the procedure, then suture the incision. The surgeon may insert a tube into your stomach to stabilize the stomach wall. The tube will be removed in about a week.

If you’re having the TIF procedure, a flexible tube will be inserted through your mouth, which will allow the surgeon to perform fundoplication with special tweezers and fasteners, without making any incisions.