| Location | University of Western Sydney, School of Medicine |
| Discipline | |
| App. deadline | 30/06/2016 |
| Funding |
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| Eligibility | Australian and New Zealand residents |
Western Sydney University's Gastrointestinal Motility Unit is headed byDr Vincent Ho, Clinical Academic Gastroenterologist and Director of theGastroenterology Research Team. Dr Ho leads a team of doctors, academics,clinical researchers and administrative specialists dedicated to betterunderstand the cause of GI motility disorders through bothlaboratory-testing and clinical research. Our laboratory is located withinthe School of Medicine, supported jointly by the Sydney South West LocalHealth District (SSWLHD).
Gastroparesis is a chronic gastric motilitydisorder characterised by delayed gastric emptying. There are an estimated125,000 gastroparesis sufferers in Australia. The majority of diagnosedgastroparesis are idiopathic (underlying cause is not known), with thesecondly most likely cause attributing to diabetes. Up to 30% to 50% ofadult patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes experience chronicgastroparesis. Symptoms include early satiety, postprandial fullness,nausea, vomiting, and upper abdominal pain. There is no cure forgastroparesis; the goals of treatment are to relieve symptoms. Treatmentfocuses on dietary modifications, control of blood glucose in patients withdiabetes, and use of prokinetic and antimetic agents either alone or incombination.
The general approach to nutritional therapy forpatients with gastroparesis focuses on reducing meal size, as well asreducing fibre and fat intake to help control symptoms. Dietary fibresbecome viscous when mixed with water and can further decrease the abilityto clear indigestible fibre from the stomach of gastroparetic patients.Although the avoidance of high fibre foods is recommended, what is notknown is the type of fibre and the quantity of fibre that should bewithheld. Dietary fibres, especially soluble fibres, are physiologicallyimportant in attenuating postprandial blood glucose and insulin levels, andlowering serum cholesterol levels. This may be clinically important becauseattenuated postprandial blood glucose levels are linked to increased rateof gastro emptying in diabetes. Another approach which has been used inpatients with diabetic gastroparesis is a small particle diet
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