Patent ID: 8267888

Claim:
A compacted, swallowable, self-expanding, temporary gastric implant comprising: a. a plurality of at least one discrete expandable elements, each of said expandable elements comprising: i. at least one expandable envelope having an interior and an exterior, configured to temporarily seal, after the implant has been swallowed, the envelope interior from gastric fluid in a human stomach at least until an integral, gas-producing composition in fluid communication with the interior of the envelope produces a gas to expand the envelope to a selected size, and wherein the envelope is configured so that the selected size of the expanded envelope contacts walls of the stomach sufficiently to produce a sensation of fullness in that stomach; and, ii. the integral, gas-producing composition configured to produce a gas after being swallowed by a human being and, b. attachment means adapted to attach each of said expandable elements to at least one other expandable element; wherein interconnection of said plurality of discrete expandable elements by said attachment means provides a single implant unit comprising a plurality of discrete elements.