The following is a summary of “Gastric Alimetry Expands Patient Phenotyping in Gastroduodenal Disorders Compared with Gastric Emptying Scintigraphy,” published in the February 2024 issue of Gastroenterology by Wang, et al.
Accurate assessment of gastric motility is crucial for diagnosing neuromuscular disorders, yet current methods, such as gastric emptying testing (GET), lack specificity and sensitivity. Gastric Alimetry (GA), integrating noninvasive gastric electrophysiological mapping and symptom profiling, holds promise for improved patient phenotyping. For a study, researchers sought to compare GA with GET in patient-specific phenotyping for chronic gastroduodenal symptoms.
Patients with chronic gastroduodenal symptoms underwent both GET and GA, involving a baseline period, ingestion of a 99mTC-labelled egg meal, and a 4-hour postprandial recording. GA results were cross-referenced with normative ranges. Symptom profiling was conducted using the GA App, and patients were phenotyped based on their symptom patterns and gastric activity.
About 75 patients, predominantly female (77%), were included. Motility abnormalities were detected in 22.7% (GET) (14 delayed, 3 rapid) and 33.3% (GA spectral analysis), with a combined yield of 42.7%. Among patients with normal spectral analysis, GA identified sensorimotor 17% (where symptoms strongly paired with gastric amplitude, median r = 0.61), continuous (30%), and other (53%) symptom phenotypes. GA phenotypes showed stronger correlations with symptom severity and psychometric scores (P > 0.05) compared to Rome IV Criteria. Delayed gastric emptying did not predict specific GA phenotypes.
GA demonstrated promise in improving patient phenotyping for chronic gastroduodenal disorders, offering enhanced correlation with symptoms and psychometrics compared to traditional methods like GET and Rome IV Criteria. The findings suggested potential advancements in diagnostic profiling and personalized management approaches for gastroduodenal disorders.
Reference: journals.lww.com/ajg/abstract/2024/02000/gastric_alimetry_expands_patient_phenotyping_in.23.aspx