Half-time (1/2 T) of gastric emptying after a physiological meal labeled with 99m-Tc A1b in dyspeptic patients before and after metoclopramide administration
Indovina, I.; Cataldo, M.G.; Bongiorno, A.
Bollettino della Societa Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale 53(10): 771-775
1977
ISSN/ISBN: 0037-8771 PMID: 588344 Document Number: 114956
Individual variation to the rule that the half life of gastric radioactivity (T 1/2) corresponds to 1/2 the total gastric emptying time was found when human volunteers or patients are fed a meal labeled with 99mTc albumin. The case population treated consisted of 9 subjects: 5 with hypotonic dyspepsia and 4 with hypertonic dyspepsia. In each of these patients, 2 gastric emptying episodes were observed after the same standard meal containing radioactively labeled technetium albumin was administered; once without additional medication (basal conditions) and once when 10 mg metoclopramide was given i.m. 20 min before the meal. Radioactivity measurements were recorded on a semilogarithmic scale at the start and every hour for 6 h afterward. In the hypotonic dyspepsia cases, gastric emptying time was lengthened by 4-6 h under basal conditions. The curves were analyzed for the 1st and 2nd half of gastric emptying. In 1 group there was an acceleration of gastric emptying in the 2nd part of the curve, while in the other group there was a slowing of gastric emptying. Metoclopramide increases gastric tonicity, accelerating gastric emptying by 1-2 to 2 1/2 h. The actual behavior of the stomachs did not obey any set rule and was highly individualistic. It is not sufficient to calculate gastric T 1/2 to estimate total emptying time, contrary to popular belief.