Gastric Electrical Stimulation

• Is Gastric Electrical Stimulation Superior to Standard Pharmacologic Therapy in Improving GI Symptoms, Healthcare Resources, and Long-Term Healthcare Benefits?

The aim of this study is to compare the symptoms and healthcare resource utilization costs of patients treated via gastric electrical stimulation (GES) and those treated with traditional pharmacological agents in an outpatient program (MED).

Cutts TF, Luo J, Starkebaum W, et al.
Neurogastroenterology and Motility, 2005

• Chronic Gastric Electrical Stimulation for Gastroparesis Reduces the Use of Prokinetic and/or Antiemetic Medications and the Need for Hospitalizations

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of chronic gastric electrical stimulation (GES) on the daily use of prokinetics and antiemetics, hospitalizations, total symptom score (TSS), SF-36 status for health-related quality of life (HQOL), and gastric emptying of a solid meal. The authors evaluated 37 gastroparetic patients preoperatively and 1 year after undergoing GES implant.

Lin Z, McElhinney C, Sarosiek I, et al.
Digestive Diseases and Sciences, 2005

• Treatment of Diabetic Gastroparesis by High-Frequency Gastric Electrical Stimulation

This review of 48 diabetic patients with refractory gastroparesis shows that high-frequency gastric electrical stimulation by a permanently implanted system may significantly improve upper gastrointestinal symptoms, health-related quality of life, nutritional status, and glucose control.

Lin Z, Forster J, Sarosiek I, McCallum RW.
Diabetes Care, 2004

• Gastric Electrical Stimulation for Medically Refractory Gastroparesis

This study investigated the effect of high-frequency/low-energy gastric electrical stimulation for the treatment of gastroparesis. Results included significantly decreased vomiting frequency and gastrointestinal symptoms and improved quality of life.

Abell T, McCallum R, Hocking M, et al.
Gastroenterology,2003

• Gastric Electrical Stimulation for Gastroparesis Improves Nutritional Parameters at Short, Intermediate, and Long-Term Follow-up

Nutritional depletion, either macronutrient- or micronutrient-related, is common in patients with drug-refractory gastroparesis for which there is often no effective treatment. The authors studied a group of 12 patients who had symptoms of gastroparesis and were a subset of the Gastric ElectroMechanical Stimulation trial of gastric electrical stimulation.

Abell T, Lou J, Tabaa M, et al. J
Parenteral Enteral Nutrition, 2003

• Gastric Electrical Stimulation in Intractable Symptomatic Gastroparesis

In this multicenter study, patients with drug-refractory gastroparesis were reassessed 3, 6, and 12 months after permanent implantation. At 1 year, the average weight gain was 5.5% and 9/14 patients initially receiving enteral or parenteral nutrition were able to discontinue it.

Abell T, VanCutsem E, Abrahamsson H, et al.
Digestion, 2002

• Gastric Pacing is a New Surgical Treatment for Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis is a chronic gastric motility disorder affecting mostly young and middle-aged women who present with nausea, abdominal pain, early satiety, vomiting, fullness, and bloating. From April 1998 to September 2000, 25 patients underwent gastric pacemaker placement. After placement of the gastric pacemaker, patients rated significantly fewer symptoms and had a modest acceleration of gastric emptying.

Forster J, Sarosiek I, Delcore R, et al.
American Journal of Surgery, 2001

• Assessment of Gastric Emptying using a Low Fat Meal: Establishment of International Control Values

The diagnosis of gastroparesis implies delayed gastric emptying. The diagnostic gold standard is scintigraphy, but techniques and measured endpoints vary widely among institutions. In this study, a simplified scintigraphic measurement of gastric emptying was compared to conventional gastric scintigraphic techniques and normal gastric emptying values defined in healthy subjects.

Tougas G, Eaker E, Abell T, et al.
American Journal of Gastroenterology, 2000