Differential gastric emptiness according to preoperative stomach position in neurological impaired patients who underwent laparoscopic fundoplication and gastrostomy.

PURPOSE We sometimes experienced prolonged delayed gastric emptying (DGE) in neurologically impaired patients undergoing laparoscopic fundoplication and gastrostomy. We explored the difference in the DGE rate according to the preoperative stomach position. METHODS Thirty-two neurological impaired patients who underwent laparoscopic fundoplication and gastrostomy between 2015 and 2019 were classified into two groups based on stomach position: non-elevated stomach position (NESP) and elevated stomach position (ESP). Patients' characteristics, operative result and postoperative gastric emptying were reviewed. RESULTS The 11 ESP patients were significantly older than the 21 NESP patients (p < 0.05). The ESP patients had a significantly heavier body weight (BW) than the NESP patients (p < 0.05). The time taken (days) to reduce gastric drainage (days, below BW × 10 ml) in the NESP (4.3 ± 3.6) was significantly longer than that of ESP (1.3 ± 1.6) (p < 0.05). The time taken (days) to achieve full enteral nutrition in the NESP (14.1 ± 8.9) was significantly longer than that of the ESP patients (8.8 ± 3.1) (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION Elevated stomach position (ESP) patients archived full enteral nutrition earlier than NESP patients after laparoscopic fundoplication and gastrostomy. Stomach position correction might, therefore, be involved in the incidence of DGE.