Measurement of gastric emptying in the critically ill

Abstract

Background & aims: Enteral nutrition is important in critically ill patients and is usually administered via a nasogastric tube. As gastric emptying is frequently delayed, and this compromises the delivery of nutrient, it is important that the emptying rate can be quantified. Methods: A comprehensive search of MEDLINE/PubMed, of English articles, from inception to 1 July 2014. References of included manuscripts were also examined for additional studies. Results: A number of methods are available to measure gastric emptying and these broadly can be categorised as direct- or indirect-test and surrogate assessments. Direct tests necessitate visualisation of the stomach contents during emptying ..