Gastric emptying: a comparison of three methods.
OBJECTIVE
A better understanding of the clinical relevance of delayed gastric emptying (e.g. in diabetes) requires a simple, easily accessible and inexpensive method for measuring it. Two "new" methods for measuring gastric emptying of liquids (the paracetamol absorption test and the 13C-acetate breath test) are compared with the gold standard (gastric emptying scintigraphy (GES)).


METHODS
The three techniques were used simultaneously in 10 healthy subjects. A gastric emptying time-retention curve was drawn for each technique and the results were compared at the 75%, 50% and 25% retention quartiles.


RESULTS
Agreement was found between the paracetamol absorption test and GES (p=0.95; Hotelling's T 2 test). Using the Wagner-Nelson one compartment correction produced a retention curve for the 13C-acetate breath test statistically significantly below GES (p<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
In healthy subjects, the paracetamol absorption test produced results comparable to those of liquid GES, but not to the results of the 13C-acetate breath test.
Glerup
Henning
H
Department of Internal Medicine, Regionhospital Silkeborg, Denmark. MAHGL@sc.aaa.dk
Bluhme
Henrik
H
Villadsen
Gerda E
GE
Rasmussen
Karin
K
Ejskjaer
Niels
N
Dahlerup
Jens F
JF
D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D000328:Adult; D001944:Breath Tests; D002247:Carbon Isotopes / Q000032:analysis; D004435:Eating; D005260:Female; D005746:Gastric Emptying / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007408:Intestinal Absorption; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D012016:Reference Values; D013270:Stomach / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D013997:Time Factors
D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D000082:Acetaminophen