Plasma somatostatin levels in patients with chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction.
OBJECTIVE
Somatostatin participates in the control of gut motility. Recently, somatostatin analogs have been proposed as therapeutic agents for chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction, although the endogenous somatostatin pattern has never been assessed in this syndrome. We aimed to evaluate fasting and postprandial plasma somatostatin levels in patients with chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction (CIIP).


METHODS
We studied eight patients with CIIP and 10 healthy volunteers. Blood samples were taken at regular intervals while patients and subjects fasted and during the 3 h after a standard solid/liquid meal (550 kcal) had been eaten. Somatostatin was measured by radioimmunoassay.


RESULTS
Fasting somatostatin levels were normal, whereas postprandial peptide responses were markedly impaired or even absent in patients with CIIP.


CONCLUSIONS
An impaired postprandial somatostatin response in patients with CIIP seems to be characteristic of this heterogenous disorder. Whether the lack of somatostatin response to a meal identifies patients with severe gut dysmotility for whom treatment with somatostatin analogs would be useful remains to be verified.
Peracchi
M
M
Cattedra di Malattie del Metabolismo, Università degli Studi di Milano, IRCCS-Ospedale Maggiore, Italy.
Basilisco
G
G
Bareggi
B
B
Quatrini
M
M
Velio
P
P
Bianchi
P A
PA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005215:Fasting; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007418:Intestinal Pseudo-Obstruction / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010191:Pancreatic Polypeptide / Q000097:blood; D019518:Postprandial Period; D013004:Somatostatin / Q000097:blood*
D001786:Blood Glucose; D013004:Somatostatin; D010191:Pancreatic Polypeptide