Models of gastric emptying

Abstract

Some empirical and theoretical models of the emptying behaviour of the stomach are presented. The laws of Laplace, Hooke, and Poisseuille are used to derive a new model of gastric emptying. Published data on humans are used to test the model and evaluate empirical constants. It is shown that for meals with an initial volume of ≥ 300 ml, the reciprocal of the cube root of the volume of meal remaining is proportional to the time the meal is in the stomach. For meals of initial volume of < 300 ml the equation has to be corrected for the fact that the 'resting volume' of gastric contents is about 28 ml. The more exact formula is given in the text. As this model invokes no neural or hormonal factors, it is suggested that the gastric empyting response to the volume of a meal does not depend on these factors. The gastric emptying response to the composition of the meal does depend on such factors and a recent model of this process is used to evaluate an empirical constant.