Relationship between symptoms during a gastric emptying study, daily symptoms and quality of life in patients with diabetes mellitus

Abstract Aims Gastric emptying is of limited utility for predicting the severity of symptoms in patients with diabetes mellitus and gastrointestinal symptoms. We evaluated the extent to which symptoms recorded during a 13C‐spirulina‐based gastric emptying breath test (GEBT) or scintigraphy predicting the severity of daily symptoms in diabetes mellitus. Methods Gastric emptying, symptoms during a gastric emptying study, either scintigraphy (n = 38) or GEBT (n = 111), and daily gastrointestinal symptoms were evaluated in 149 patients with diabetes mellitus and variably severe gastrointestinal symptoms. Key Results Gastric emptying was normal, delayed, and rapid in 37%, 52%, and 9% measured with the GEBT and 55%, 34%, and 11% of patients measured with scintigraphy; differences between GEBT and scintigraphy were not significant. Daily symptoms were moderately severe or more intense in 58% and 21% of patients undergoing scintigraphy and GEBT (P < 0.0001). Symptoms during the GEBT (46%) and emptying thalf (3%) explained 50% of the variance in daily symptoms in the GEBT group. In the scintigraphy group, symptoms explained 29% of this variance; the thalf was insignificant. Patients who reported that one or more symptoms were more severe than the others during the GE study were more likely (OR 3.98, 95% CI 2.16, 7.33) to report the same symptom(s) as being the most severe in the daily diary. Conclusions Symptoms during a GEBT and to a lesser extent during scintigraphy, but not gastric emptying predict the severity of daily symptoms and may serve as a biomarker in patients with diabetes mellitus.