Causes, Symptoms and Treatment Methods of Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis is the failure of an empty stomach, because gastric motility is reduced. It is also called delayed gastric emptying. Diabetes is the leading cause of gastroparesis. Gastroparesis can also occur after gastric surgery for other conditions. Gastroparesis is a weak stomach. You can have a variety of abdominal discomfort. The stomach is a hollow organ in the first line of the muscle, which acts as a container for food together. You can diabetes worsened by the difficulty of controlling blood sugar levels.

When food is delayed in the stomach is finally absorbed in the small intestine and the level of blood glucose. Since gastroparesis makes stomach emptying unpredictable, the level of glucose in the blood of a person to be unpredictable and difficult to control. Patients may develop gastroparesis underwent gastric surgery, particularly those who had pre-operative gastrointestinal obstruction as a complication of an ulcer. Patients with pseudo-obstruction, often delayed gastric emptying as well.

Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis is a disorder in which the stomach takes too long to empty its contents. Gastroparesis or delayed stomach emptying is most often a complication associated with Type 1 diabetes, although it sometimes occurs in people with Type 2 diabetes. Up to 50 per cent of people with diabetes develop gastroparesis, though the vast majority will only experience it to a mild extent.

Gastroparesis occurs when the nerves to the stomach are damaged or stop working. The vagus nerve controls the movement of food through the digestive tract. If the vagus nerve is damaged, the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work normally, and the movement of food is slowed or stopped.

Diabetes can damage the vagus nerve if blood glucose levels remain high over a long period of time. High blood glucose can cause chemical changes in nerves and can damage the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the nerves.

Gastroparesis - Diseases & Conditions

Gastroparesis, also called delayed gastric emptying, is a disorder in which the stomach takes too long to empty its contents. It often occurs in people with type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes.

Gastroparesis happens when nerves to the stomach are damaged or stop working. The vagus nerve controls the movement of food through the digestive tract. If the vagus nerve is damaged, the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work normally, and the movement of food is slowed or stopped.

Diabetes can damage the vagus nerve if blood glucose levels remain high over a long period of time. High blood glucose causes chemical changes in nerves and damages the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the nerves.

Gastroparesis - Delayed Gastric Emptying

How your stomach works

Most people don't know that the stomach lies high in the left upper abdomen protected by the lower rib cage. Empty, the volume of the stomach "pouch" is less than one-half cup. As you eat, the stomach's muscular wall can relax and expand to hold about three pints of sustenance. The stomach's job is to liquify solid food preparing it for digestion and absorption in the small intestine. This is done by mixing the food with powerful digestive juices for several hours. To hold the food within the stomach there are two valves. At the top of the stomach is the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) which prevents backsplash of stomach contents upward into the esophagus. At the bottom of the stomach is the pylorus which controls the "drain" of the stomach.

Once these two valves are closed, muscular contractions called peristaltic waves ripple through the stomach squeezing gently in the upper part (fundus), more powerfully lower down (antrum). These contractions are controlled by a stomach pacemaker, much like the heart, and travel through the fibers of the vagus nerve. When the pacemaker fires, this muscular churning motion mixes the food particles with powerful hydrochloric acid and the enzyme, pepsin. Produced by the stomach, these strong chemicals convert the food to about the consistency of cream of potato soup.

What is Gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis means paralysis of the muscles of the stomach. Gastroparesis results in delayed emptying of food from the stomach into the small intestine.

The stomach is a hollow organ composed primarily of muscle that serves as a storage container for food. Food in the stomach is ground into tiny pieces by the constant churning that is generated by the contractions of the stomach's muscles. Once the food has been adequately ground, it slowly is emptied from the stomach into the intestine in a metered fashion. Only food ground into small particles can be emptied from the stomach in a normal fashion, and smaller particles are digested better in the intestine. Moreover, the metering process allows the emptied food to be well-mixed with the digestive juices of the intestine, pancreas, and liver (bile) and to be absorbed well from the intestine.

When the stomach's muscles are paralyzed, food is not thoroughly ground and does not empty into the intestine normally. Since the muscular mechanisms whereby ground, solid food and liquid food are emptied from the stomach are different, there may be delayed emptying of solid food (most common), solid and liquid food (less common), or liquid food alone (least common).

Gastroparesis

This tough looking word, pronounced gas-tro-par-EES-is, is simple enough in its meaning. Gastro means stomach. Paresis means weakness. Gastroparesis is a weak stomach. This condition is very common. It can be the cause of a number of abdominal complaints. It is usually not a serious problem and there are effective treatments available.

How the Stomach Works

To understand gastroparesis, you first must understand how the stomach functions. The stomach has two parts. The upper portion is called the fundus which is where swallowed food and liquid collect. The lower portion is called the antrum. This is the stomach grinder. It is where food is churned back and forth until it is broken into small fragments and then squirted out into the duodenum, the first part of the small intestine.

It may be a surprise to think of the stomach as being similar to the heart, yet this is really true. Both have an area within them called the pacemaker. This is where an electrical wave originates and then sweeps across the organ. The electrical wave causes the muscles in the heart and stomach to contract. In the stomach, the pacemaker is in the upper portion. The wave sweeps down across the antrum causing it to contract, grind up food, and expel small amounts into the duodenum, the first part of the small bowel. The normal rate of contraction is about three times a minute, much slower than the heart, but quite adequate for the job.

Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis is a disorder affecting people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in which the stomach takes too long to empty its contents (delayed gastric emptying). The vagus nerve controls the movement of food through the digestive tract. If the vagus nerve is damaged or stops working, the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work normally, and the movement of food is slowed or stopped.

Just as with other types of neuropathy, diabetes can damage the vagus nerve if blood glucose levels remain high over a long period of time. High blood glucose causes chemical changes in nerves and damages the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the nerves.

What are the symptoms?

Signs and symptoms of gastroparesis include the following:

    * Heartburn
    * Nausea
    * Vomiting of undigested food
    * Early feeling of fullness when eating
    * Weight loss
    * Abdominal bloating
    * Erratic blood glucose (sugar) levels
    * Lack of appetite
    * Gastroesophageal reflux
    * Spasms of the stomach wall

What Is Gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis is a condition in which your stomach cannot empty itself of food in a normal fashion. It is caused by damage to the vagus nerve, which regulates the digestive system. A damaged vagus nerve prevents the muscles in the stomach and intestine from functioning, preventing food from moving through the digestive system properly.

The causes of gastroparesis include:

    * Uncontrolled diabetes/hypertension
    * Viral infections
    * Gastric surgery with injury to the vagus nerve
    * Medications such as narcotics and some antidepressants
    * Amyloidosis (deposits of protein fibers in tissues and organs) and scleroderma (a connective tissue disorder that affects the skin, blood vessels, skeletal muscles, and internal organs)

Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis, also called delayed gastric emptying, is a disorder in which the stomach takes too long to empty its contents. Normally, the stomach contracts to move food down into the small intestine for digestion. The vagus nerve controls the movement of food from the stomach through the digestive tract. Gastroparesis occurs when the vagus nerve is damaged and the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work normally. Food then moves slowly or stops moving through the digestive tract.

What causes gastroparesis?

The most common cause of gastroparesis is diabetes. People with diabetes have high blood glucose, also called blood sugar, which in turn causes chemical changes in nerves and damages the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the nerves. Over time, high blood glucose can damage the vagus nerve.

Gastroparesis Overview

What is gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis is a disorder in which the stomach takes too long to empty after eating. The delay results in bothersome and possibly serious symptoms because digestion is altered.

What causes gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis occurs when the nerves to the stomach are damaged or don't work. Diabetes is the most common cause. Other causes include some disorders of the nervous system, such as Parkinson's disease and stroke, and some medicines, such as tricyclic antidepressants, calcium channel blockers, and narcotics. It can also be a complication of gastric surgery.