Gastric emptying scintigraphy in postprandial distress syndrome

The Role of Ultrasonography in the Diagnosis of Functional Dyspepsia

Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a syndrome mostly diagnosed by subjective patients’ symptoms after excluding organic, systemic and metabolic diseases. Aim: The goal of this study is to evaluate gastric emptying in patients with functional dyspepsia, by measuring the antral area (cm2) after the intake of a test meal using ultrasonography as an objective and widely applicable method. Material and Methods: This study included 30 patients (mean age of 46.53 ±9.73 years) with symptoms of FD according to the ROMA IV criteria and 30 healthy individuals (mean age of 42.87 ±4.42 years). A 5 MHz ultrasound probe was used to measure the stomach antral area at 6 different time points: in the fasting state, following the meal intake at 5, 30, 60, 90 and 120 min postprandially. Results: The antral area was statistically significantly larger after a 30-minute postprandial period in patients with FD comparing to healthy controls (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the rate of gastric emptying at 120 minutes in patients with functional dyspepsia, compared to healthy subjects (p <0.01). Patients with postprandial distress syndrome had the average value of gastric emptying 48.25 compared to 56.09 in patients with epigastric pain syndrome (p <0.05). The slowest emptying was observed in patients with nausea and postprandial fullness (p <0.05). Conclusion: Functional dyspepsia is associated with delayed gastric emptying. Using ultrasonography to measure the antral area helps us to assess gastric emptying and therefore to assess patients with functional dyspepsia. The antral area was significantly larger in patients with functional dyspepsia compared to healthy subjects after the test meal, suggesting slower gastric emptying in the dyspeptic patients. Since the diagnosis of functional dyspepsia is based mostly on diverse patients’ symptoms, using ultrasonography to measure the antral area helps us to objectively assess this problem.

Analysis of Network Pharmacological Efficacy and Therapeutic Effectiveness in Animal Models for Functional Dyspepsia of Foeniculi fructus

For centuries, Foeniculi fructus (F. fructus) has been used as a traditional herbal medicine in China and Europe and is widely used as a natural therapy for digestive disorders, including indigestion, flatulence, and bloating. The mechanism of F. fructus that alleviates functional dyspepsia was analyzed through network pharmacology, and its therapeutic effect on an animal model of functional dyspepsia were investigated. The traditional Chinese medicine systems pharmacology (TCMSP) database was used to investigate the compounds, targets, and associated diseases of F. fructus. Information on the target genes was classified using the UniProtdatabase. Using the Cytoscape 3.9.1 software, a network was constructed, and the Cytoscape string application was employed to examine genes associated with functional dyspepsia. The efficacy of F. fructus on functional dyspepsia was confirmed by treatment with its extract in a mouse model of loperamide-induced functional dyspepsia. Seven compounds targeted twelve functional dyspepsia-associated genes. When compared to the control group, F. fructus exhibited significant suppression of symptoms in a mouse model of functional dyspepsia. The results of our animal studies indicated a close association between the mechanism of action of F. fructus and gastrointestinal motility. Based on animal experimental results, the results showed that F. fructus provided a potential means to treat functional dyspepsia, suggesting that its medical mechanism for functional dyspepsia could be described by the relationship between seven key compounds of F. fructus, including oleic acid, β-sitosterol, and 12 functional dyspepsia-related genes.

Efficacy of a Traditional Herbal Formula, Banha-Sasim-Tang in Functional Dyspepsia Classified as Excess Pattern

This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of Banha-sasim-tang (BST) in patients with functional dyspepsia (FD). BST (Banxia-xiexin-tang in traditional Chinese medicine and Hange-shashin-to in Kampo medicine) is traditionally prescribed for the treatment of dyspepsia with epigastric stiffness and gastric fullness in China, Japan, and Korea. Patients with FD were randomly administered an oral dose (10 g) of BST syrup or placebo, twice a day for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the symptom checklist part of the Nepean dyspepsia index (NDI). The secondary outcomes were the quality of life (QoL) part of the NDI, functional dyspepsia-related QoL (FD-QoL), and visual analog scale (VAS). A total of 60 patients with FD were screened, and 50 were randomized into BST group (n = 25) and placebo group (n = 25). Two patients in the placebo group withdrew before the start of the treatment. Administration of BST syrup resulted in improvement in the symptom-related NDI score in the BST group compared with that in the control group; however, the difference was not significant. BST syrup significantly improved "fullness after eating" index of NDI at follow-up time point (2.88 ± 2.65 vs 4.78 ± 2.69, p = 0.0081). In the total score of the QoL section of the NDI and FD-QoL scales, there was no significant improvement in the BST group compared to that in the placebo group. With regard to improvement in overall FD symptoms, the VAS scale showed improvement in both groups, but the difference was not significant. Interestingly, follow-up investigation showed a significantly beneficial effect of BST on FD symptoms, when compared to placebo. Significant improvement observed in VAS score (39.60 ± 22.29 vs 52.17 ± 20.55, p = 0.048). This indicated that the effect of BST lasted even after the completion of the medication regimen. Overall, our data suggest that while BST showed no significant improvement in the symptom-related NDI score and the QoL related scores in NDI and FD-QoL after 4 weeks of treatment, it effectively improved the VAS score and fullness after eating-related symptoms in the follow-up visit. Clinical Trial Registration:https://cris.nih.go.kr; Identifier KCT 0002013.

Clinical application of gastrointestinal contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in diagnosis of gastric duodenal diseases

Gastrointestinal contrast-enhanced ultrasound examination is performed by giving patients an oral gastrointestinal ultrasound developer to enhance the imaging of the gastrointestinal structure, which can significantly reduce or even eliminate the interference of gastrointestinal gas and effectively reflect the gastric and duodenal lesions as well as their size, shape, and echo, with high diagnostic accuracy. This article mainly expounds the application of gastrointestinal contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in gastric and duodenal diseases to provide reference for clinicians.

Banha-sasim-tang improves gastrointestinal function in loperamide-induced functional dyspepsia mouse model

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Banha-sasim-tang (BST; Hange-shashin-to in Kampo medicine; Banxia xiexin tang in traditional Chinese medicine) is a traditional Chinese harbal medicine that has been commonly used for gastrointestinal disorders.

AIM OF THE STUDY

To investigate the pharmacological effects of BST, a standardized herbal drug, on main symptoms of functional dyspepsia including delayed gastric emptying, and underlying mechanisms of action in mouse model.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

Balb/C mice were pretreated with BST (25, 50, 100 mg/kg, po) or mosapride (3 mg/kg, po) for 3 days, and then treated with loperamide (10 mg/kg, ip) after 19 h fasting. A solution of 0.05% phenol red (500 μL) or 5% charcoal diet (200 μL) was orally administered, followed by scarifying and assessment of gastric emptying or gastro-intestinal motility. C-kit (immunofluorescence), nNOS (western blot) and gastric contraction-related gene expression were examined in stomach tissue.

RESULTS

The loperamide injection substantially delayed gastric emptying, while the BST pretreatment significantly attenuated this peristaltic dysfunction, as evidenced by the quantity of stomach-retained phenol red (p < 0.05 or 0.01) and stomach weight (p < 0.05 or 0.01). The BST pretreatment significantly tempered the loperamide-induced inactivation of c-kit and nNOS (p < 0.05 or 0.01) as well as the contraction-related gene expression, such as the 5HT₄ receptor (5HT₄R), anoctamin-1 (ANO1), ryanodine receptor 3 (RYR3) and smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase (smMLCK). The BST pretreatment also significantly attenuated the alterations in gastro-intestinal motility (p < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Our results are the first evidence of the prokinetic agent effects of Banha-sasim-tang in a loperamide-induced FD animal model. The underlying mechanisms of action may involve the modulation of peristalsis via activation of the interstitial cells of Cajal and the smooth muscle cells in the stomach.