Comparison of gastric emptying of a solid and a liquid nutritional rehabilitation food

Objective: To compare gastric emptying of a solid and a liquid nutritional rehabilitation food. Design: Cross-over trial. Eight volunteers took, in random order at least 1 week apart, 2100 kJ of a solid and a liquid nutritional rehabilitation food with added labelled [C-13] glycine. Setting: Research ward for healthy volunteers. Subjects: Eight healthy volunteers. Methods: Appearance Of (CO2)-C-13 was monitored in expired gas every 15 min for 240 min after meal intake and compared between solid and liquid meals. Parameters of gastric emptying were then calculated. Results: Gastric half-emptying time was slightly longer for solid meal compared to liquid meal (101 +/- 6.0 vs 88 +/- 9.8 min, P = 0.24). (CO2)-C-13 excretion peaked 138 +/- 5.3 min after the solid meal compared with 119 +/- 8.6 min with liquid meal (P = 0.06). (CO2)-C-13 excretion was higher for the liquid food up to 110 min after the meal but then became higher for the solid food. Analysis of variance for repeated measures of (CO2)-C-13 excretion showed a significant interaction term between the type of food and time indicating a delayed elimination Of (CO2)-C-13 for the solid food (P = 0.018). Conclusions: Attempts to replace liquid nutritional rehabilitation foods by a solid food in malnourished patients should take into account a possible slower gastric emptying. Sponsorship: Supported by a grant from Nutriset (Malaunay, France) and ANVAR (Agence Nationale de la Valorisation de la Recherche, contract no. A9703021P). Descriptors: gastric emptying; nutritional rehabilitation; stable isotope.