Hi,
Could anyone who has been through a Gastric Emptying Test please let me know exactly what the test entails and how long it generally takes? My daughter Kara (4 1/2 mos. old) is scheduled for one on 6/7 as part of some tests she needs to have to figure out why she won't eat (she is 100% ng tube dependent) and move toward getting a G tube.

Thanks for your help!

I am sorry to hear that your little one is having so many problems right now. As for the test it is not an invasive test at all. The hardest part is having the child lie still to have the pictures taken of their stomach.

What the test will entail is having some water laced with radioactive solution through her tube. The technician will then take a series of pictures at specific intravals of the stomach to see how fast it will empty.

My kids have had the test done both with liquid and solids. The solids take longer to go through than the liquids do. This test is very helpful in seeing if there are any delays that happen. I do wish you luck and hope that you are able to get some answers soon.


Melanie

My son Daniel also did this test, and the hardest part for us was getting him to take the solution within ten minutes. So you are lucky you've got the tube.

They laid D under a camera and took one image per minute for an hour -- or that's what would've happened if he hadn't puked at minute 47. It is also good that Kara is still at an age where she'll stay fairly still for that long. Maybe you'll get lucky and she'll go to sleep!

Good luck!

My guy was 14 months old when he had this done and it was hard to do in terms of keeping him occupied while it was going on. He was "sandwiched" between equipment and had a big machine above him which caused him stress at times. He could turn his head to watch the television or play with toys we brought in to keep him busy. It was one hour straight on the table then he was allowed off for nearly a half hour and back again for a few minutes to see where he was at. This repeated again and again until we were there all told for 2.5 hours and then had a scan of his chest to check for aspiration. My understanding is that a "normal" child will empty out at one hour to 50-70%. As Iain took 2.5 hours to get to 45 % we were there much longer. Do not take a longer test to bode unfavourably though, wait for the official results.

My best advice to you is to bring LOTS of things to keep your child busy and amused. It is not invasive in the least.

UCLA does it much differently. Gavin drank a 5 ounce bottle of neocate laced with a little barrium. Then he layed on the table for a minute while they took a picture. Then he got up and walked around for 15 minutes. Then layed for another minute for another picture. Then up again and we did this for 90 minutes. SO easy. That was it. He wasnt ever scared, he loved the machine hovering over him because he was interested in some metal piece on the machine itself. He emptied 20 percent of the formula after 90 minutes which was considered a significant delay. I thought it to be more accurate to because he was up moving around. When they lay down flat and are stuck there whatever they ate or drank automatically moves through at a slower rate.

Thanks everyone for all of the info. Hopefully everything will go ok and we can move toward getting a G-tube sooner rather than later so Kara can stop pulling her NG tube out. As she gets older and more active, the NG tube is starting to make us crazy and I am sure it is reinforcing her oral aversion!!

Christine, I was wondering if they find a delay in the emptying has the doc talked about doing a jtube instead of a gtube. My son has severe delays and has a gj button. We use the gsite to vent and the jsite to do his feeds when needed.

If there are delays then using a gtube may not help but make the situation worse. I do wish you luck and hope that things procede smoothly.


Melanie

Hi there! Our son had this done as well and some are 1 hour, some an hour and a half, and some two. The others already said everything, The hardest part for us was trying to entertain our toddler during the procedure, he was held down with sandbags. And, watching his stomach not empty for an hour and half, other than that it wen't much better than expected.

My Noah had this test, also, but the ladies have already covered everything! He inhaled the barium, and he was hardly drinking anything at that point so I was so impressed!

I am sorry that Kara is not eating. I hope that you find some answers through the testing. Good luck, and welcome to IRD!

Melanie,
Kara's GI did mention the possiblility of doing a G/J or J tube depending on what the emptying test results are. She has been vomiting a bit more frequently lately, so that has me worried as well. I hope that it is her reflux acting up, as I have read that it can peak between 4-6 months of age, but given Kara's medical history, I don't want to get my hopes up.

Thanks!

Keep us posted!