Effect of long-term parenteral feeding on gastric secretion in dogs

Three dogs were surgically prepared with gastric fistulas and Heidenhain (vagally denervated) pouches. Acid and pepsin responses to pentagastrin and food were determined before, at the end of a 1-mo period of total parenteral feeding, and 1 mo after the resumption of a normal oral diet. Acid and pepsin output from the denervated pouch in response to pentagastrin and food decreased significantly (P less than 0.001) after parenteral feeding and returned to control levels after the dogs resumed a normal diet. Secretory outputs from the gastric fistula in response to pentagastrin remained unchanged throughout the experiment. Basal serum gastrin levels decreased 50% during the period of intravenous feeding and returned to levels approximately twice the control levels following resumption of normal oral food intake. Serum gastrin responses to a meal also decreased during intravenous alimentation and returned to higher than normal levels following a 1-mo period of oral intake. These studies indicate that the absence of oral food intake in the dog does not result in decreased acid secretion from the innervated stomach. Vagal innervation in some way is responsible for the preservation of normal secretion during the absence of food from the gastrointestinal tract of the dog.