Welcome back to week four of my blog! We have already learned a lot about gastroparesis and this week we are going to learn about how gastroparesis is diagnosed. What tests do doctors do? Is there really any way to diagnose gastroparesis? And how was I diagnosed?
Health care providers will ask about your signs and symptoms (more on this next week) and lots of diagnostic tests to determine if you have gastroparesis or not. These tests are not helpful in specifically identifying gastroparesis but they are useful in ruling out other diagnoses that may present similarly to gastroparesis. Gastroparesis is a unique diagnosis in the fact that a simple blood test or diagnostic test will not identify the disease. Gastroparesis is instead diagnosed by ruling out other diseases and identifying common signs and symptoms of the disease progression. Confused? We will talk more in a bit.
Providers will probably want to do some blood work specifically focused on liver and gallbladder enzymes. If you have difficulty processing/digesting fats or protein you might have some of the same signs and symptoms as gastroparesis. Providers can see if your liver and gallbladder are functioning well by looking at the blood work analysis. If these results are normal they will probably move to diagnostic exams.
Often the first diagnostic test the provider will want to do is an endoscopy. This procedure is used to visually examine your upper digestive system- the esophagus, stomach and the beginning of the small intestine. The provider uses a small camera attached to a long and flexible tube to visualize the areas while you are sedated. This test is performed to rule out acid reflux and peptic ulcers. Here is a picture of what an endoscopy looks like to give you an idea!
Next, the provider may order an ultrasound of the abdomen. This is a non-invasive exam that is sensitive to blockages in the intestines, abnormalities in any of the abdominal organs, and signs of inflammation. The ultrasound looks at all the organs and functional parts of the abdomen and it relatively stress free for the patient. Here is a picture that simplistically shows what an ultrasound will look like during the procedure.
Other commonly used diagnostics include an upper gastrointestinal series and a gastric emptying study. An upper GI series involves drinking a white, chalk like substance that coats the GI system and shows abnormalities during an X-ray. A gastric emptying study involves eating a small meal that contains a radioactive material (not as scary as it sounds). A scanner is used to detect the movement of the material though your GI system. This can be an important study in identifying the rate at which food is moving through the stomach.
What did the diagnosis phase look like for me? Well it took about 3 months to officially be diagnosed with gastroparesis. After having constant symptoms for a month my doctor did blood work, an endoscopy, and ordered an abdominal ultrasound. Not all at the same time but over a period of time- all the while monitoring my symptoms. None of my tests were abnormal. So now what?! The absence of abnormalities in any of these tests led my provider to the diagnosis of gastroparesis. Make sense now?
Okay guys that is it for this week! I hope you learned a lot about how to diagnose gastroparesis this week and next week we will continue on the the most common signs and symptoms of gastroparesis. Let me know if you have any questions!
Health care providers will ask about your signs and symptoms (more on this next week) and lots of diagnostic tests to determine if you have gastroparesis or not. These tests are not helpful in specifically identifying gastroparesis but they are useful in ruling out other diagnoses that may present similarly to gastroparesis. Gastroparesis is a unique diagnosis in the fact that a simple blood test or diagnostic test will not identify the disease. Gastroparesis is instead diagnosed by ruling out other diseases and identifying common signs and symptoms of the disease progression. Confused? We will talk more in a bit.
Providers will probably want to do some blood work specifically focused on liver and gallbladder enzymes. If you have difficulty processing/digesting fats or protein you might have some of the same signs and symptoms as gastroparesis. Providers can see if your liver and gallbladder are functioning well by looking at the blood work analysis. If these results are normal they will probably move to diagnostic exams.
Often the first diagnostic test the provider will want to do is an endoscopy. This procedure is used to visually examine your upper digestive system- the esophagus, stomach and the beginning of the small intestine. The provider uses a small camera attached to a long and flexible tube to visualize the areas while you are sedated. This test is performed to rule out acid reflux and peptic ulcers. Here is a picture of what an endoscopy looks like to give you an idea!
Next, the provider may order an ultrasound of the abdomen. This is a non-invasive exam that is sensitive to blockages in the intestines, abnormalities in any of the abdominal organs, and signs of inflammation. The ultrasound looks at all the organs and functional parts of the abdomen and it relatively stress free for the patient. Here is a picture that simplistically shows what an ultrasound will look like during the procedure.
Other commonly used diagnostics include an upper gastrointestinal series and a gastric emptying study. An upper GI series involves drinking a white, chalk like substance that coats the GI system and shows abnormalities during an X-ray. A gastric emptying study involves eating a small meal that contains a radioactive material (not as scary as it sounds). A scanner is used to detect the movement of the material though your GI system. This can be an important study in identifying the rate at which food is moving through the stomach.
What did the diagnosis phase look like for me? Well it took about 3 months to officially be diagnosed with gastroparesis. After having constant symptoms for a month my doctor did blood work, an endoscopy, and ordered an abdominal ultrasound. Not all at the same time but over a period of time- all the while monitoring my symptoms. None of my tests were abnormal. So now what?! The absence of abnormalities in any of these tests led my provider to the diagnosis of gastroparesis. Make sense now?
Okay guys that is it for this week! I hope you learned a lot about how to diagnose gastroparesis this week and next week we will continue on the the most common signs and symptoms of gastroparesis. Let me know if you have any questions!
References
Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, and Bucher. Medical-Surgical Nursing: Assessment and management of Clinical Problems. 9th edition. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier; 2014.
Hasler, W. L. (2011). Gastroparesis: pathogenesis, diagnosis and management. Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 8(8), 438-454. doi:10.1038/nrgastro.2011.116
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