Gastric motility after laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy, with or without preservation of the pylorus, for early gastric cancer, as assessed by digital dynamic x-ray imaging.

This study aimed to evaluate the usefulness of digital x-ray imaging for measuring gastric motility in patients subjected to laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy without preservation of the pylorus (LADG) or laparoscopically assisted pylorus-preserving gastrectomy (LAPPG) for early gastric cancer. Between April 1998 and February 2002, 52 patients with preoperative stage IA gastric cancer underwent laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy, with 26 receiving LADG for tumors in the lower third of the stomach and 26 receiving LAPPG for tumors in the middle third of the stomach. The gastric emptying ratio at 15 min after the ingestion of the test meal was 61.8% +/- 28.0% for LADG and 42.9% +/- 18.0% for LAPPG ( p < 0.01). The motility index was 2.65% +/- 2.54% for LADG and 8.13% +/- 2.46% for LAPPG ( p < 0.001). In conclusion, LAPPG results in better motility than LADG for patients with early gastric cancer arising in the middle third of the stomach.