MRI Scan Reveals Stomach Quirks in Dyspepsia Patients

Twenty-six people with functional dyspepsia and twenty healthy volunteers took part in a stomach MRI study. They were scanned while fasting, after drinking a liquid meal, and while emptying. The VIGA MRI system measured stomach sizes, emptying speed, and muscle movements.

The FD group emptied their stomach faster than the healthy group. Half-emptying took about 48 minutes for patients versus 68 minutes for controls. That difference was statistically significant. Also, the fundus part of the stomach held less material, and the contents moved more toward the middle and lower sections.

Patients showed twice as many stomach rhythm problems—half of them versus only ten percent of healthy folks. The wave that pushes stomach contents forward moved slower both when the stomach filled and when it emptied. Numbers were about 3.2 mm per second for patients and 4.1 mm per second for controls.

More severe bloating or heartburn linked to smaller antrum space or slower movement during filling. These MRI results help map how the stomach works in health and disease, offering a non-invasive way to study dyspepsia.