Gastrointestinal Transit Time in Parkinson's Disease Using a Magnetic Tracking System

Symptoms from the gastrointestinal tract are highly prevalent in Parkinson's disease (PD), but knowledge of the underlying pathology is incomplete and valid objective markers on regional gastrointestinal function are limited.

The aims were to evaluate gastrointestinal transit time and motility in PD patients and controls.

Twenty-two PD patients and 15 controls were included. Gastric-, small intestinal-, and caecum-ascending colonic transit times as well as colonic motility, defined as mass- and fast movements, were performed using the ambulatory 3D-Transit system. Gastrointestinal transit time with radio opaque markers, gastric emptying scintigraphy, and subjective non-motor symptoms were also evaluated.

Using the 3D-Transit system, the patient group displayed significantly longer small intestinal- and caecum-ascending transit times (p = 0.030 and p = 0.0063). No between-group difference was seen in gastric transit time (p = 0.91). Time to first mass- and fast colonic movement were significantly increased in PD (p = 0.023 and p = 0.006). Radio opaque marker gastrointestinal transit time was significantly increased in the patient group (p < 0.0001), whereas no difference was seen in scintigraphic gastric emptying time (p = 0.68). Prevalence of constipation symptoms on the NMSQuest was 41% in PD and 7% in controls.

Significantly increased small intestinal- and caecum-ascending 3D-Transit times were detected in PD patients. Also, time to first propagating colonic movement was increased. Radio opaque marker gastrointestinal transit time was significantly delayed, but no difference was seen in gastric transit time and gastric emptying time. The present findings highlight widespread intestinal involvement in PD increasing throughout the gastrointestinal tract.