In Functional Dyspepsia, Hypersensitivity to Postprandial Distention Correlates With Meal-Related Symptom Severity

• Published in: Gastroenterology (New York, N.Y. 1943) Vol. 145; no. 3; pp. 566 - 573
• Main Authors: Farré, Ricard, Vanheel, Hanne, Vanuytsel, Tim, Masaoka, Tatsuhiro, Törnblom, Hans, Simrén, Magnus, Van Oudenhove, Lukas, Tack, Jan F
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.09.2013
• Subjects: ACID BREATH; Adult; Breath Tests; Case-Control Studies; Dilatation - methods; DRINKING TEST; Dyspepsia - diagnosis; Dyspepsia - physiopathology; EMPTYING RATE; Fasting; Female; Gastric Accommodation; Gastric Emptying; GASTRODUODENAL DISORDERS; Gastroenterologi; Gastroenterology and Hepatology; Humans; HYPERSENSITIVITY; IDIOPATHIC GASTROPARESIS; IMPAIRED GASTRIC ACCOMMODATION; IRRITABLE-BOWEL-SYNDROME; Logistic Models; Male; Middle Aged; Multivariate Analysis; Postprandial Distress Syndrome; Postprandial Period; PROXIMAL STOMACH; SENSORIMOTOR FUNCTION; Severity of Illness Index; Surveys and Questionnaires; TEST; VISCERAL; Visceral Hypersensitivity; minimal distending pressure; CSS; irritable bowel syndrome; CI; Visceral Hypersensitivity; Postprandial Distress Syndrome; functional dyspepsia; SPECT; cumulative symptom score; MDP; t 1/2; confidence interval; Gastric Accommodation; IBS; gastric half-emptying time; FD; PDS; single-photon emission computed tomography; t1/2; t(1/2)
• ISSN: 0016-5085; 1528-0012
• DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2013.05.018

Background & Aims Hypersensitivity to gastric distention, an important feature of functional dyspepsia, is assessed by stepwise balloon distention of the proximal stomach in fasting patients. However, symptoms of functional dyspepsia are often worse after a meal, so studies of postprandial balloon distentions might be more relevant. We compared the effects of fasting and postprandial stomach distention in patients with functional dyspepsia. Methods Twenty healthy controls and 62 patients with functional dyspepsia participated in a gastric barostat study at Leuven University Hospital with graded isobaric distentions before and after a liquid meal. On a separate day, all patients underwent a gastric emptying breath test with assessment of postprandial severity of 6 different dyspeptic symptoms scored at 15-minute intervals for 4 hours. For each symptom, a meal-related severity score was obtained by adding all scores; the cumulative symptom score (CSS) was obtained by adding individual symptom severity scores. Results In patients, but not in controls, postprandial sensitivity to balloon distention was significantly greater than fasting sensitivity. The CSS and individual symptom scores did not differ between patients with normal or hypersensitivity to fasting distention, but patients who were hypersensitive to postprandial distention had a significantly higher CSS, along with scores for postprandial fullness, bloating, and nausea (all P < .05). On multivariate analysis, hypersensitivity to postprandial distention was associated with hypersensitivity to fasting distention and with impaired accommodation to a meal. Conclusions Postprandial, but not fasting, distention thresholds are related to the severity of meal-related symptoms in patients with functional dyspepsia.