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Updated: Mar 26, 2026
Author Spotlight: Point-of-Care Ultrasound for Gastric Content Assessment and Risk Stratification in Perioperative Care
Published on: September 22, 2023
Gastric Wall Fatty Infiltration in Patients Without Overt Gastrointestinal Disease
Alban Gervaise1, Pierre Naulet1, Christelle Gervaise-Henry2
11 Department of Radiology, Legouest Military Hospital, BP 90001, 57077 Metz Cedex 3, France.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the frequency of gastric wall fatty infiltration in patients without overt gastrointestinal disease.
Materials And Methods:
A retrospective study included patients who underwent unenhanced MDCT for renal colic. Two radiologists reviewed all of the images and evaluated for the presence of gastric wall fatty infiltration. The following patient characteristics were also recorded: sex, age, body mass index, total and visceral fat area, and presence of colic or ileal fat halo sign, or hepatic steatosis. A t test and Fisher test were used to compare the results between patients with and patients without gastric wall fatty infiltration.
Results:
Gastric wall fatty infiltration was present in 25 of 120 (21%) patients in the study. Mean age, weight, body mass index, visceral and total fat areas, proportion of hepatic steatosis, number of men, and frequency of the presence of colic and ileal fat halo signs were significantly higher among patients with gastric wall fatty infiltration than in those without infiltration.
Conclusion:
Gastric wall fatty infiltration was significantly more frequent in men older than 45 years and patients with a body mass index greater than 25. It may represent a normal finding, but its relation to other pathologic conditions related to obesity remains to be explored.
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