title: Measuring of gastric emptying in Egyptian pediatric patients with portal hypertension by using real-time ultrasound.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Among the various methods for evaluating gastric emptying, the real-time ultrasound is safe, does not require intubation, or rely on either radiologic or radionuclide technique. The aim of our work was to measure the gastric emptying in pediatric patients with portal hypertension by using the real-time ultrasound.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty patients with portal hypertension with mean age 7 ± 2.8 years and 20 healthy children as a control group underwent gastric emptying study by using real-time ultrasound. The cross-sectional area of the gastric antrum was measured in the fasting state and then each subject was allowed to drink tap water then calculated by using formula area (π longitudinal Χ anteroposterior diameter/4). The intragastric volume was assumed to be directly proportional to the cross-sectional area of the antrum.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean gastric emptying half-time volume was significantly delayed in portal hypertension patients (40 ± 6.8 min) compared with the control subjects (27.1 ± 3.6) min (P<0.05). Patients with extrahepatic portal vein obstruction had significant delayed gastric emptying in comparison to patients with portal hypertension due to other etiologies (36.14 ± 4.9 vs 44.41 ± 6.04 min; P<0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Ultrasound is a noninvasive and a reliable method for measuring gastric emptying in pediatric patients. Gastric emptying was significantly delayed in patients with portal hypertension. Etiology of portal hypertension may influence gastric emptying time in patients with chronic liver disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Research Institute of Ophthalmology, Ain Shams University Faculty of Medicine, Egypt. mesf57@gmail.com
authors.forename: Mona E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Fahmy
authors.forename: Mahmoud A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Osman
authors.forename: Rehab A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Mahmoud
authors.forename: Lamiaa K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Mohamed
authors.forename: Khaled I
authors.initials: KI
authors.lastname: Seif-elnasr
authors.forename: Ayman E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Eskander
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005746:Gastric Emptying / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D006975:Hypertension, Portal / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D014463:Ultrasonography