Gastric Emptying Study

Background

Gastric emptying study (GES) is a noninvasive nuclear medicine test used to evaluate patients with suspected gastric motility disorders. As its name suggests, it is used to determine the amount of time required for the stomach to empty after a meal. The first GES to evaluate gastric motility was described in 1966 by Dr. G.H. Griffith and colleagues and consisted of “a standard breakfast of ordinary food” labeled with chromium-51. In 2008, an expert panel of gastroenterologists and nuclear medicine physicians developed consensus guidelines for GES, which is also referred to as gastric emptying scintigraphy.