Gastric emptying of solids and its relationship with microalbuminuria in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Background: The aims of the present study were to determine the frequency of delayed gastric emptying in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and to investigate the relationship between gastric emptying rate and other contributing factors (e. g. serum HbA1c, duration of diabetes and microalbuminuria) in these patients. Methods: This was a clinical trial evaluating the rate of gastric emptying of solid meals in 33 children and adolescents with T1DM and in 26 healthy peers using a radionuclide method. Three consecutive overnight urine collections were used to calculate the albumin excretion rate. Results: There was no significant difference in the gastric half-emptying time (GE t 1/2) between patients and controls (151.7 +/- 154.5 vs 109.8 +/- 60.5 min, respectively; P = 0.885) or the frequency of delayed gastric emptying (36.4% vs 30.8%, respectively; P = 0.433). There was a moderately positive correlation between GE t1/2 and the duration of diabetes (r = 0.380; P = 0.029). There was no correlation between GE t1/2 and microalbumin levels in T1DM patients. In these patients, the body mass index standard deviation scores were significantly lower than in patients with normal gastric emptying (-0.13 +/- 0.87 vs 0.7 +/- 1.23, respectively; P = 0.044). Conclusion: Progression of delayed gastric emptying is more likely to be related to a longer duration of diabetes than glycemic control in children and adolescents with T1DM. Patients with delayed gastric emptying are thinner compared with patients with a normal rate of gastric emptying; they may also be asymptomatic.