Gastric Emptying Study

A gastric emptying study uses a radioactive substance (or tracer) to examine your gastrointestinal tract.

A gastric emptying study is performed to determine the amount of time required for your stomach to empty after a meal. The study can be helpful in detecting causes of unexplained nausea, vomiting and bloating or weight loss.

Before Your Procedure

• Tell your physician if you are pregnant or nursing.
• You should not eat or drink anything for 6 hours prior to your study.
• You may take your medications as usual, unless instructed differently by your physician.

During Your Procedure

• You will first be given a meal of 2 scrambled eggs and toast provided by the hospital. A small amount of radioactive material has been added to the food. Your body usually eliminates the tracer within 24 hours. The radiation you are exposed to with the ingested radioactive substance is about the same as a regular X-ray.
• After you have eaten, images will be taken with a gamma camera. A gamma camera is a special camera that senses the radioactive substance and displays this information on a screen which is stored in a computer. The images are taken at intervals for about 3-4 hours.
• Total length of exam is about 3 ½ -4 ½ hours.

After Your Procedure

• You can resume your normal activities.
• Your doctor will be contacted with the results of your test and will discuss the results with you.