New England Gastropareis Consortium: Neurobiology of Gastroparesis

ABSTRACT
Symptoms of gastroparesis include chronic nausea and vomiting, early satiation, postprandial fullness,
abdominal distention and frequently pain. While initially conceptualized as a disorder of enteric motor
dysfunction (i.e., delayed gastric emptying), growing research suggests both (1) a disconnect between
symptom severity and emptying severity, and (2) largely ineffectiveness of treatments that target motor
dysfunction. Although the causes of gastroparesis can be multi-factorial, when the disease becomes chronic
and the severity of the symptoms result in a high impact on Quality of Life (QOL), complex pathologies may
begin to evolve in the enteric and central nervous system beyond just motor abnormalities contributing to other
sensory defects. Further profiling of biopsychosocial constructs in gastroparesis is needed, as such constructs
could be targeted by novel interventions. To accomplish these goals, we propose to continue with the New
England Gastroparesis Collaborative as part of the NIH Gastroparesis Consortium. The multi-center network
will help recruit to our proposal of further gastroparesis patient characterization in the Registries and
continuation of various multi-center studies for gastroparesis. In addition, our site (Massachusetts General
Hospital; MGH) proposes addressing: (1) the contribution of novel biopsychosocial factors in the maintenance
of gastroparesis symptoms, and (2) the preliminary efficacy of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for
gastroparesis.

Grant Number: 5U01DK112193-09
NIH Institute/Center: NIH
Principal Investigator: Helen Burton Murray