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mayoclinic.org - Gastroparesis - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic

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Overview

Stomach and pyloric valve Open pop-up dialog box Close Stomach and pyloric valve Stomach and pyloric valve Your stomach is a muscular sac about the size of a small melon that expands when you eat or drink. It holds as much as a gallon (3.8 liters) of food or liquid. Once your stomach breaks down the food, strong muscular contractions known as peristaltic waves push the food toward the pyloric valve. This valve leads to the upper portion of your small intestine, a segment known as the duodenum. Gastroparesis is a condition that affects the normal spontaneous movement of the muscles (motility) in your stomach. Ordinarily, strong muscular contractions propel food through your digestive tract. But if you have gastroparesis, your stomach's motility is slowed down or doesn't work at all, preventing your stomach from emptying properly. The cause of gastroparesis is usually unknown. Sometimes it's a complication of diabetes, and some people develop gastroparesis after surgery. Certain medications, such as opioid pain relievers, some antidepressants, and high blood pressure and allergy medications, can lead to slow gastric emptying and cause similar symptoms. For people who already have gastroparesis, these medications may make their condition worse. Gastroparesis can interfere with normal digestion, cause nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. It can also cause problems with blood sugar levels and nutrition. Although there's no cure for gastroparesis, changes to your diet, along with medication, can offer some relief.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of gastroparesis include:

Vomiting

Nausea

Abdominal bloating

Abdominal pain

A feeling of fullness after eating just a few bites

Vomiting undigested food eaten a few hours earlier

Acid reflux

Changes in blood sugar levels

Lack of appetite

Weight loss and malnutrition

Many people with gastroparesis don't have any noticeable signs and symptoms.

When to see a doctor

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Causes

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It's not always clear what leads to gastroparesis, but in some cases it can be caused by damage to a nerve that controls the stomach muscles (vagus nerve). The vagus nerve helps manage the complex processes in your digestive tract, including signaling the muscles in your stomach to contract and push food into the small intestine. A damaged vagus nerve can't send signals normally to your stomach muscles. This may cause food to remain in your stomach longer, rather than move into your small intestine to be digested. The vagus nerve and its branches can be damaged by diseases, such as diabetes, or by surgery to the stomach or small intestine.

Risk factors

Factors that can increase your risk of gastroparesis:

Diabetes

Abdominal or esophageal surgery

Infection, usually from a virus

Certain medications that slow the rate of stomach emptying, such as narcotic pain medications

Scleroderma — a connective tissue disease

Nervous system diseases, such as Parkinson's disease or multiple sclerosis

Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)

Women are more likely to develop gastroparesis than are men.

Complications

Gastroparesis can cause several complications, such as:

mayoclinic.org - Gastroparesis - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic

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