Clinical Outcomes of a Large, Prospective Series of Gastric Electrical Stimulation Patients Using a Multidisciplinary Protocol

Background: Gastric electrical stimulation (GES) is an intervention used in the treatment of medically refractory gastroparesis. There are few large series demonstrating efficacy over a long-term follow-up period. This study reports clinical outcomes for patients from a single institution for up to 5 years.

Study design: A prospective database of patients undergoing GES implantation for gastroparesis was collected and reviewed. Patients were selected according to a multidisciplinary institutional protocol. Baseline characteristics, including age, sex, smoking history, etiology of gastroparesis, and duration of gastroparesis symptoms, were collected. Symptomatic response was evaluated using Gastroparesis Cardinal Symptom Index (GCSI) surveys preoperatively and at subsequent follow-up visits. Other clinical outcome variables include medication use, hospitalizations due to gastroparesis, and overall satisfaction with symptom relief. Patient outcomes regarding reoperation and explantation were also recorded.

Results: A total of 157 patients have undergone GES at our institution since 2012. GCSI scores were collected in all patients at baseline, in 141 patients at 1-year follow-up, and in 110 patients at 5-year follow-up. Symptom severity in all 9 gastroparesis symptoms evaluated by the GCSI, as well as the total GCSI score, was reduced significantly at 1 year postoperatively, and these results were sustained at 5-year follow-up. Use of prokinetic and antiemetic medications was reduced during the follow-up period. Hospitalizations due to gastroparesis symptoms were also reduced. GES devices were explanted in 5 patients, 12 patients required generator exchanges, and 7 patients required reoperation due to displaced or eroded device leads during the study period.

Conclusions: GES is associated with sustained symptomatic relief, reduced reliance on medications, and reduced hospitalizations in gastroparesis patients selected using our institutional protocol.