Relationship between jejunal interdigestive migrating motor complex and quality of life after total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction for early gastric cancer.

A total of 22 patients (16 men, 6 women; age 33 to 70 years, m mean, 60.2 years) 1.0 to 1.5 years (mean 1 year and 2 months) after total gastrectomy with Roux-en- Y reconstruction for early gastric cancer (D2 lymph node dissection, curability A) were divided into two groups based on the occurrence of interdigestive migrating motor complex, phase III (IMMC-pIII) from the Roux-en- Y loop, and postoperative quality of life (QOL) was compared. Results were as follows: (1) Patients in the IMMC- pIII positive group (n = 12) had more appetite and ate more food with less decrease in body weight than those in the IMMC-pIII negative group (n = 10). (2) Patients in the IMMC-pIII positive group clearly had fewer symptoms, such as early dumping symptoms (systemic symptoms), symptoms of reflux esophagitis (e.g., heartburn, feeling of regurgitation, difficult swallowing), nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, abdominal fullness, and borborygmus, than those in the IMMC-pIII negative group. These results showed a more satisfactory condition in regard to abdominal symptoms in the IMMC-pIII positive group than in the IMMC-pIII negative group.