Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis slows or stops food movement from the stomach to the small intestine, causing disruptive symptoms and affecting nutrition. At North Shore Gastroenterology, our board certified specialists provide expert care to help manage this condition.

What is Gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis, or "stomach paralysis," is a condition that disrupts the normal movement of stomach muscles. In a healthy digestive system, strong muscle contractions move food through the digestive tract. With gastroparesis, this movement is impaired, causing the stomach to empty improperly.

This delayed stomach emptying can cause a range of uncomfortable symptoms and may lead to complications like malnutrition, dehydration, and unpredictable blood sugar levels.

Managing gastroparesis requires a comprehensive approach to identify the underlying cause and create a treatment plan tailored to your specific needs.

Causes and Risk Factors

Gastroparesis occurs when the vagus nerve, which controls the muscles of the stomach and small intestine, is damaged. This damage prevents the nerve from properly signaling to the stomach muscles, resulting in impaired digestion.

While some cases are idiopathic (of unknown cause), various factors can contribute to vagus nerve damage and gastroparesis, including:

  • Diabetes.
  • Post-surgical complications.
  • Infections.
  • Some medications.

Symptoms of Gastroparesis

The symptoms can range from mild to severe and often create significant daily challenges for those affected.

Common signs and symptoms include:

  • Nausea and Vomiting: Often, vomiting occurs hours after a meal, and the food may still be undigested.
  • Early Satiety: Feeling full after eating only a few bites of food.
  • Bloating and Abdominal Pain: A sense of uncomfortable fullness or pain in the upper abdomen.
  • Heartburn or GERD-like Symptoms: Stomach acid may back up into the esophagus.
  • Poor Appetite and Malnutrition: A reduced desire to eat, leading to unintentional weight loss.
  • Unpredictable Blood Sugar Levels: In people with diabetes, erratic food absorption makes blood sugar control very difficult.

Diagnosing Gastroparesis

Because the symptoms of gastroparesis overlap with many other digestive issues, accurate diagnosis is crucial.

Diagnostic procedures include:

This is the most important test for diagnosing gastroparesis. You eat a small, light meal (often eggs or oatmeal) containing a tiny amount of a traceable substance. A scanner then tracks how quickly the food leaves your stomach over several hours.

A doctor examines your esophagus and stomach with a thin, flexible camera to rule out any physical blockages or other structural problems that could be causing your symptoms.

You swallow a small, disposable capsule that measures pressure, pH, and temperature as it travels through your entire digestive tract, providing detailed information on transit times.

Treatment and Management of Gastroparesis

The goals of treatment are to manage symptoms, improve stomach emptying, and ensure you get adequate nutrition.

Some treatment strategies may involve:

This is the foundation of management. It typically involves eating smaller, more frequent meals; choosing low-fat and low-fiber foods; and pureeing solid foods or drinking liquid nutritional supplements.

A surgically implanted device sends mild electrical pulses to the stomach muscles to help control nausea and vomiting.

A minimally invasive endoscopic procedure that cuts the pylorus (the valve between the stomach and small intestine) to help the stomach empty more effectively.

In severe cases where a patient cannot tolerate any food or liquid by mouth, a feeding tube may be necessary to deliver nutrients directly into the small intestine, by passing the stomach.

Schedule a Consultation in Westlake or Brooklyn, OH

At North Shore Gastroenterology, we provide expert diagnosis and compassionate care for patients with gastroparesis and other complex digestive disorders. Contact us today at (440) 808-1212 or request an appointment online to schedule a visit.