Changes in patients' symptoms and gastric emptying after Helicobacter pylori treatment.

AIM: To investigate the changes in clinical symptoms and gastric emptying and their association in functional dyspepsia (FD) patients. METHODS: Seventy FD patients were enrolled and divided into 2 groups Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)-negative group (28 patients), and H. pylori-positive group (42 patients). Patients in the H. pylori-positive group were further randomly divided into groups: H. pylori-treatment group (21 patients) and conventional treatment group (21 patients). Seventy two healthy subjects were selected as the control group. The proximal and distal stomach area was measured by ultrasound immediately after patients took the test meal, and at 20, 40, 60 and 90 min; then, gastric half-emptying time was calculated. The incidence of symptoms and gastric half-emptying time between the FD and control groups were compared. The H. pylori-negative and conventional treatment groups were given conventional treatment: domperidone 0.6 mg/(kg/d) for 1 mo. The H. pylori-treatment group was given H. pylori eradication treatment + conventional treatment: lansoprazole 30 mg once daily, clarithromycin 0.5 g twice daily and amoxicillin 1.0 g twice daily for 1 wk, then domperidone 0.6 mg/(kg/d) for 1 mo. The incidence of symptoms and gastric emptying were compared between the FD and control groups. The relationship between dyspeptic symptoms and gastric half-emptying time in the FD and control groups were analyzed. Then total symptom scores before and after treatment and gastric half-emptying time were compared among the 3 groups. RESULTS: The incidence of abdominal pain, epigastric burning sensation, abdominal distension, nausea, belching, and early satiety symptoms in the FD group were significantly higher than in the control group (50.0% vs 20.8%; 37.1% vs 12.5%; 78.6% vs 44.4%; 45.7% vs 22.2%; 52.9% vs 15.3%; 57.1% vs 19.4%; all P < 0.05). The gastric half-emptying times of the proximal end, distal end, and the whole stomach in the FD group were slower than in the control group (93.7 ± 26.2 vs 72.0 ± 14.3; 102.2 ± 26.4 vs 87.5 ± 18.2; 102.1 ± 28.6 vs 78.3 ± 14.1; all P < 0.05). Abdominal distension, belching and early satiety had an effect on distal gastric half-emptying time (P < 0.05). Abdominal distension and abdominal pain had an effect on the gastric half-emptying time of the whole stomach (P < 0.05). All were risk factors (odds ratio > 1). The total symptom score of the 3 groups after treatment was lower than before treatment (P < 0.05). Total symptom scores after treatment in the H. pylori-treatment group and H. pylori-negative group were lower than in the conventional treatment group (5.15 ± 2.27 vs 7.02 ± 3.04, 4.93 ± 3.22 vs 7.02 ± 3.04, All P < 0.05). The gastric half-emptying times of the proximal end, distal end, and the whole stomach in the H. pylori-negative and H. pylori-treatment groups were shorter than in the conventional treatment group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: FD patients have delayed gastric emptying. H. pylori infection treatment helps to improve symptoms of dyspepsia and is a reasonable choice for treatment in clinical practice.

The calcium-sensing receptor participates in testicular damage in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Male infertility caused by testicular damage is one of the complications of diabetes mellitus. The calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) is expressed in testicular tissues and plays a pivotal role in calcium homeostasis by activating cellular signaling pathways, but its role in testicular damage induced by diabetes remains unclear. A diabetic model was established by a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ, 40 mg kg-1 ) in Wistar rats. Animals then received GdCl 3 (an agonist of CaSR, 8.67 mg kg-1 ), NPS-2390 (an antagonist of CaSR, 0.20 g kg-1 ), or a combination of both 2 months after STZ injection. Diabetic rats had significantly lower testes weights and serum levels of testosterone compared to healthy rats, indicating testicular damage and dysfunction in STZ-induced diabetic rats. Compared with healthy controls, the testicular tissues of diabetic rats overexpressed the CaSR protein and had higher levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), lower superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and higher numbers of apoptotic germ cells. The testicular tissues from diabetic rats also expressed lower levels of Bcl-2 and higher levels of Bax and cleaved caspase-3 in addition to higher phosphorylation rates of c-Jun NH 2 -terminal protein kinase (JNK), p38, and extracellular signaling-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2. The above parameters could be further increased or aggravated by the administration of GdCl 3 , but could be attenuated by injection of NPS-2390. In conclusion, the present results indicate that CaSR activation participates in diabetes-induced testicular damage, implying CaSR may be a potential target for protective strategies against diabetes-induced testicular damage and could help to prevent infertility in diabetic men.