GASTROPARESIS: Gastroparesis is a disorder that causes the stomach to take a longer than normal time to empty its contents. The vagus nerve controls food movement through the intestines, and when it is damaged, the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work properly; food may move slowly down the digestive tract or stop moving completely.
CAUSES OF GASTROPARESIS: The leading cause of gastroparesis is diabetes. People who have diabetes have high blood pressure, which can cause chemical changes in nerves and damage blood vessels. Over time, high blood pressure/sugar can damage the vagus nerve and thus leave it impaired. A few other causes of gastroparesis include viral infections, anorexia nervosa or bulimia, surgery on the stomach or vagus nerve, medications that slow intestine contractions, gastroesophgeal reflux disease, nervous system diseases, metabolic disorders and smooth muscle disorders (Source: National Institutes of Health).
RISKS WITH GASTROPARESIS: If it takes too long for the food to be processed through the intestines, it can cause bacterial overgrowth and can harden into solids, or bezoars that can cause nausea, vomiting and obstruction inside the stomach. Bezoars can cause dangerous complications if they block food passage into the small intestine.
STOMACH PACEMAKER: Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital surgeons are performing a unique surgery to treat the symptoms of gastroparesis called gastric electric stimulation. It involves implanting a stomach "pacemaker," a small device implanted underneath the skin in the lower abdomen that sends mild electrical impulses. These impulses stimulate nerves and smooth the muscles of the stomach. The device is intended to reduce symptoms of chronic nausea and vomiting closely associated with gastroparesis. Though the device is coined a "pacemaker," Dr. Todd Wood, general surgeon at Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital in Houston, Texas, says the device is more accurately described as a "stimulator."
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Lindsey Klingensmith
Media Relations
Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital
Houston, TX
Lindsey.klingensmith@memorialhermann.org
(713) 222-CARE
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