Development of a Protocol for Dynamic Gastric Emptying Scintigraphy

Gastric emptying (GE) scintigraphy is a noninvasive technique that is useful for assessing gastric accommodation and emptying. Further, it can facilitate dynamic acquisition, which provides continuous images over time. Hence, we considered the quantitative evaluation of residual gastric motility function using dynamic images in post-gastrectomy patients. The current study aimed to establish a protocol for dynamic GE scintigraphy, a novel method that can quantitatively assess residual gastric motility function in patients who underwent gastrectomy.

A preliminary analysis of four healthy volunteers who underwent dynamic GE scintigraphy examinations was performed. The following factors were considered during the development of the examination protocols: direction of acquisition, start time for acquisition, frame time, acquisition time, and end of the acquisition period. A clinical analysis of 14 postoperative patients who underwent dynamic GE scintigraphy examinations was performed. The examination protocol used in the clinical study was based on the results of the preliminary study. Four indices, including T_peak, T_1/2, lag phase, and gastric peristaltic frequency, were calculated.

The T_peak was 7.9±3.8 min (mean±standard deviation), the T_1/2 reached 52.3±19.2 min, and the lag phase was 4.5±2.5 min. The peristaltic frequency was almost equal in all cases, and there were no significant differences between the major and minor axes.

The novel dynamic GE scintigraphy protocol was established to quantitatively assess residual gastric motility in postgastrectomy patients.