title: [Scintigraphic study of gastric emptying and intragastric distribution of a solid meal: gender differences].
abstract: Gender-related differences in gastric emptying are still controversial. The aims of this study were: to confirm the sex-related difference in gastric emptying of a solid meal and to investigate its association with different patterns of meal distribution between the proximal and distal gastric compartments. Eighteen healthy volunteers (nine males, mean age 35 +/- 9 years; nine females, mean age: 41 +/- 11 years) were studied in the morning, after ingestion of the solid test-meal (an omelette labeled with 185MBq of 99mTc-sulfur colloid). Simultaneous anterior and posterior images of the stomach were acquired immediately after ingestion of the meal and every 10 minutes for 120 minutes. Time versus activity curves were obtained for the whole, proximal and distal stomach. Gastric T1/2 was longer in women (96.1 +/- 17.2 min) than in men (79.9 +/- 17.8 min; P = 0.02). The analysis of the meal distribution inside the stomach showed no differences between males and females in proximal gastric emptying, but the meal retention in the distal compartment was significantly increased among women (P = 0.04). In conclusion, gastric emptying of a solid meal is slower in pre-menopausal women than in age-matched men, probably due to an increased retention of the meal in the distal compartment. This should be taken into consideration to avoid misleading diagnosis of gastroparesis for female patients.
authors.affiliation: Disciplina de Gastroenterologia, Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas de Campinas FCM-UNICAMP, Campinas, SP.
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Lorena
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tinois
authors.forename: E S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.forename: S Q
authors.initials: SQ
authors.lastname: Brunetto
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Camargo
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Mesquita
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D005746:Gastric Emptying / Q000502:physiology*; D005772:Gastrointestinal Transit / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013270:Stomach / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D013671:Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D013671:Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid