Gastroparesis - Problem w/Fluid Emptying Only - Need help with rare symptom / diagnosis

[Hufsamor]

Ok.
Have a safe journey home.
And don't feel you need to respond,
I'd just like to share a little something from another study I found.
(It's old, thought, from 1991)

" in conclusion, this study has shown that the proximal stomach may play a more important role in the emptying of solids, and the distal stomach a more important role in the emptying of liquids "
https://gut.bmj.com/content/gutjnl/32/6/615.full.pdf

 

[Hufsamor]

If the study above is correct, the two bottom parts of the illustration is where you're main problem is

 

[Howard]

" in conclusion, this study has shown that the proximal stomach may play a more important role in the emptying of solids, and the distal stomach a more important role in the emptying of liquids "

That's okay, it will take them hours to get me out of here, to find transportation Etc.

Interesting. Proximal stomach is aware or senses food particles...?

 

[Malea]

So sorry to hear, that they really leave you on your own with the fluid problem. @Howard

I have nothing helpful to add but I am a bit perplexed by this. What must happen that the stomach stops recognizing water as something to digest. Is this about damaged nerves?
Great research @Hufsamor and explanations @Plum and everyone else.

What I don’t get... if it is the proximal stomach that would be responsible for digesting the fluids, why does the problem already start with swallowing them.
Just thinking out loud.

 

[Hufsamor]

Rather strange, don't you think?
But they took pictures from healthy peoples stomachs to figure it out....

I'll be back with the swallowing thing, I just have to find the links again?

 

[sb4]

Maybe its already been said here but could you bypass this by eating high water content foods. Or eating macros that conserve water. Either high carb or high fat does this but I can't remember.

 

[Hufsamor]

From health line:

While the exact cause of gastroparesis isn’t known, it’s thought to have something to do with disrupted nerve signals in the stomach. It’s believed that when the nerves to the stomach become affected by a variety of factors, food can move through it too slowly. Other problems such as the stomach being overly sensitive to signals from the nervous system and the stomach not being able to react to a meal are believed to also have a role in this condition.

Other health conditions are also associated with gastroparesis but are less common. These include:

• viral infections
• some cancers
• cystic fibrosis
• Parkinson’s disease
• autoimmune diseases
• amyloidosis, a condition that causes an abnormal protein buildup in organs
• medications that make the stomach empty more slowly
• thyroid disorders

 

[Shoshana]

I wonder how you did with taking in wet foods, @Howard
like the applesauce, you had there, to add liquids and hydration, without adding more than tolerated of the clear liquids?

 

[Hufsamor]

I can't find all of the links again, but as far as I understand:
A viral infection can mess up your nerve signals,
and it can effect stomach, your throat (and give you swallowing problems) or both.

So I suppose it means it can effect either the proximal and /or the distal stomach as well? Both or only the one of them?

 

[Howard]

If the study above is correct, the two bottom parts of the illustration is where you're main problem is

Based on CT scans, and the upper endoscopy, they stated that my stomach is enlarged, which I already knew, because it hangs down to nearly my belly button... possibly because it's always filled with fluids? All that extra weight?

And perhaps because it's sagging so greatly, the fluids won't drain out through the Pyloric sphincter. And maybe the food particles float on top of the fluids, allowing them easy exit, or an easier exit through the pyloric sphincter.

 

[Howard]

I wonder how you did with taking in wet foods, @Howard
like the applesauce, you had there, to add liquids and hydration, without adding more than tolerated of the clear liquids?

Applesauce is okay, but swallows a lot easier if I add cinnamon to it (or ginger). Makes more saliva that way. It's kind of a recognition thing, my esophagus recognizing that food is actually on the way versus water which it has no idea is coming.

 

[Howard]

A viral infection can mess up your nerve signals,
and it can effect stomach, your throat (and give you swallowing problems) or both.

I do have the active Epstein-Barr virus, which I think is viral, right?

Perhaps it's being more active than usual?

 

[Malea]

Based on CT scans, and the upper endoscopy, they stated that my stomach is enlarged, which I already knew, because it hangs down to nearly my belly button... possibly because it's always filled with fluids? All that extra weight?

Oh that’s something I thought about mentioning. I know some people who have extreme difficulties eating AND drinking even small amounts. All these people were diagnosed both with an enlarged stomach that hangs extremely down and with EDS.

A viral infection can mess up your nerve signals,
and it can effect stomach, your throat (and give you swallowing problems) or both.

I wonder if this happens when the whole thing turns into autoimmune.

 

[Hufsamor]

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03120325

Here is a ongoing trial,
to see if stimulating the vagus nerve can help people with gastroparesis ...

"This study is investigating a new form of treatment for a digestive disorder called gastroparesis. Gastroparesis is thought to be caused by a mix of inflammation and neural dysfunction. The vagal nerve is a large nerve originating from the brain that regulates digestive function. Patients with gastroparesis have what is a called a low vagal tone which results in gastrointestinal motility problems and inflammation; therefore, investigators hypothesize that increasing vagal tone through a hand-held vagal nerve simulator will reduce inflammation and gastrointestinal motility problems in gastroparesis patients. "

I think maybe your viris already has disturbed your vagus nerve?
I don't know if it have to be more active than usual?
But then again, hopefully it's possible to train the nerve to work again?
I have no idea...

The study goes on for another year and a half...

 

[Hufsamor]

But what to do with the enlarged stomachs?
Will they return to normal state after a while?

 

[Malea]

None of them has gone for surgery options (yet). So they just live with it, sometimes with TPN, sometimes without.

Will they return to normal state after a while?

I don’t think so.

 

[Howard]

But what to do with the enlarged stomachs?
Will they return to normal state after a while?

Logically, I would say yes. When we don't eat, our stomachs shrink, right? So I would imagine if our stomachs emptied for a period of time, became less full, it might go back to its original shape and size.

 

[Shoshana]

Another thought I had, @Howard
(another wild uneducated guess of mine, while attempting to be helpful )

is that I wonder if holding a spoon of some wet food, such as the applesauce, in your mouth, without swallowing it, for a while, might let the tissues of the mouth absorb some hydration, directly?

 

[Howard]

holding a spoon of some wet food, such as the applesauce, in your mouth, without swallowing it, for a while, might let the tissues of the mouth absorb some hydration, directly?

I'm not sure if the mouth tissues work that way, but ... sublingual medications absorb somehow.

Otherwise, the only other opening is down under.

 

[Howard]

This is why I had been drinking tart cherry juice:

Serotonin works by causing intestinal contractions which stimulate digestion, so you can see why serotonin and digestion are so crucial to healthy living. The gut has its own autonomic nervous system, meaning it doesn’t rely on the brain for signaling.

So increasing my level of Serotonin would seem to be an option to make more stomach contractions. ... possibly leading to more efficient emptying of fluids

So how else do we ingest serotonin?

is there anything more effective than the tart cherry juice?