Usefulness of a slow nutrient drinking test for evaluating gastric perception and accommodation.

BACKGROUND/AIM: An implication of the drinking test for gastric function is controversial. We evaluated the usefulness of a nutrient drinking test for examining gastric function by comparing it with a gastric barostat study. METHODS: We investigated perceived pressure of an intragastric bag with stepwise distension and postprandial peak gastric volume (accommodation volume) with a consistent pressure after drinking a liquid meal (200 ml, 300 kcal) in 18 volunteers. Drinking a similar liquid meal on a different day at a continual rate of 15 ml/min was performed to score satiety and bloated sensations at 5-min intervals. An additional 10 volunteers performed the drinking test before and after administration of mosapride citrate or a placebo in a double-blind crossover study. RESULTS: Pressure to induce severe discomfort correlated positively with maximum satiety volume in the drinking test (r = 0.60, p = 0.02). Accommodation volume in the barostat study showed a significant correlation (r = 0.59, p = 0.03) with threshold volume to induce bloating in the drinking test. Mosapride tended to increase the volume inducing the first bloated sensation as compared to the placebo. CONCLUSION: The present drinking test may be useful for evaluating the threshold to induce severe discomfort and accommodation volume.