Gastric Emptying Solid Study

What is a Gastric Emptying Study (GET)?

A Gastric Emptying Study is a test to determine the time is takes a meal to move through a person’s stomach. It is typically ordered by physicians for patients with frequent vomiting, gastroparesis, abdominal pain, early satiety and pre-operative evaluation.

How should I prepare for a Gastric Emptying Study (GET)?

You should be not eat or drink anything after midnight the day before the test, and until after the test is completed.

How long does the test take?

This test takes four and half hours to complete in one visit. When you arrive to the Nuclear Medicine Department a technologist will take you to a room and give you a meal to eat. The normal meal is 4 oz. of egg beaters scrambled; 2 pieces of toast with jam; and 6 oz. of water. In the scrambled eggs will be a radioactive isotope. This isotope will not make the eggs taste or look any different; it just allows us to see your stomach under our imaging camera. After you consume this meal a one minute image of your stomach will be taken. You will be allowed to leave the department with a time to return in 1, 2, and 4 hours later. Each time you return the technologist will take a one minute image of your stomach. This is a timed test so it is very important to be back at the times the technologist gives you. You will not be allowed to eat or drink anything until the last images is taken.

How soon will the scan results be available?

A radiologist will interpret the images, write a report, and deliver the results to your doctor via the internal computer system.

It is essential to tell your doctor if you are pregnant or think you might be pregnant before undergoing this scan because of radiation exposure.