Clinical and experimental studies on gastrointestinal motility following total colectomy: Direct measurement (strain gauge force transducer method, barium method) and indirect measurement (hydrogen breath test, acetaminophen method)

Abstract

In a clinical study, we examined the clinical assessment of bowel function and lactulose hydrogen breath test in 14 patients after total colectomy. All patients within one year after ileostomy closure had ‘poor’ function and showed no increase of hydrogen breath gas concentration. 10 of 12 patients more than one year showed increase of hydrogen breath gas concentration, and 8 of them had ‘fair’ function. The oro-neorectal transit time (ONTT) in ‘poor’ group was shorter than in ‘fair’ group and control (p<0.05). The increase of hydrogen breath gas suggests changes of bacterial flora and colonization of the remained ileum. In an experimental study, we performed subtotal colectomy with the J-pouch reservoir in 11 dogs. We examined ONTT with barium method, gastric emptying with acetaminophen method, and gastrointestinal motility with strain gauge force transducers. Although ONTT at one month after operation had been shorter than control, ONTT at 3 and 6 months became longer than at one month. The gastric emptying after subtotal colectomy was significantly slower than control. Although the propagation velocity of interdigestive migrating complex (IMC) in the jejunum and ileum at 2 weeks had been faster than control, the velocity at 4 weeks and 3 months became slower than at 2 weeks. The frequency of IMC and prolonged propagated contraction in the J-pouch reservoir decreased. The specimen of J-pouch reservoir resected at 6 months showed villous atrophy, crypt elongation, decrease of muscle layers thickness and disappearance of solitary follicles. Therefore, the suppressed motility in each sites of the gastrointestinal tract, increase of anaerobic and colonization of the ileum implied ‘adaptation’ after total colectomy. © 1991, Japan Society of Smooth Muscle Research. All rights reserved.