Psychosocial distress is associated with abnormal gastric myoelectrical activity in patients with functional dyspepsia

• Published in: Scandinavian journal of gastroenterology 2006-07, Vol.41 (7), p.791-796
• Main Authors: Chen, Tseng-Shing, Lee, Ying-Chiao, Chang, Full-Young, Wu, Han-Chang, Lee, Shou-Dong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Dyspepsia - psychology; Electrogastrography; Electrophysiology; Female; functional dyspepsia; Gastroenterology. Liver. Pancreas. Abdomen; Humans; interpersonal sensitivity; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; Muscle Contraction - physiology; Muscle, Smooth - physiology; Myoelectric Complex, Migrating - physiology; Myography - psychology; Other diseases. Semiology; Periodicity; Postprandial Period - physiology; psychological distress; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Stomach - metabolism; Stomach. Duodenum. Small intestine. Colon. Rectum. Anus; Stress, Physiological; stressful life event
• ISSN: 0036-5521; 1502-7708
• DOI: 10.1080/00365520500495599

Objective. Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a heterogeneous and loosely defined clinical syndrome that is characterized by persistent or recurrent abdominal pain or discomfort centered in the upper abdomen without any identifiable structural or biochemical basis. Gastric myoelectrical activity in functional dyspepsia patients with gastric reddish streaks as a subgroup has not previously been investigated and the potential role of psychosocial distress in the genesis of gastric dysrhythmia in patients with FD is unclear. Material and methods. Electrogastrography was performed in 45 patients with FD and 35 healthy controls for 30 min in the fasting state and 30 min postprandially. Psychological distress and the number and severity of stressful life events were measured using self-rating questionnaires. Results. FD patients had a higher percentage of pre- and postprandial dysrhythmia, lower dominant frequency, and a higher instability coefficient as compared to healthy controls. In FD patients, severity of stressful life events was positively correlated with the percentage of tachygastria in the fasting state (r=0.43, p=0.005) and marginally positively correlated with the percentage of postprandial tachygastria (r=0.253, p=0.098) and instability coefficient of the dominant frequency (r=0.256, p=0.093). Total number of stressful life events was marginally positively correlated with fasting tachygastria (r=0.25, p=0.098) and instability coefficient of the postprandial dominant frequency (r=0.287, p=0.056). Interpersonal sensitivity was found to be negatively correlated with fasting dominant frequency in FD patients (r= − 0.311, p