The long-term objective of this project is to develop a therapeutic approach for the treatment of gastric motility disorders using multi-channel phase- controlled electrical stimulation.
The specific aims of this phase I project are to obtain the optimal parameters for multi-channels electrical stimulation and to study the efficacy and efficiency of multi-channel electrical stimulation for the treatment gastroparesis in animal models. Experiments will be conducted in dogs with implanted serosal electrodes and strain gauges to obtain the most effective parameters. It is anticipated that multi- channel stimulation along the greater curvature of the stomach is more effective and efficient than single-channel stimulation. It is able to entrain gastric myoelectrical activity (and thus normalize gastric dysrhythmia), induce gastric peristaltic waves and is more practical for an implantable device (requires substantially lower energy. The second sets of experiments will be performed to investigate the effect of the proposed method on gastric emptying. Delayed gastric emptying of liquid and solid in dogs will be induced using duodenal distension and clonidine, respectively. The effect of multi-channel electrical stimulation in these animal models will be compared with single-channel stimulation. The successful completion of this project will lead to a multi-channel electrical gastric pacemaker.
A portable or implantable multi-channel pacemaker may be developed to treat patients with gastric motility disorders, such as gastroparesis and unexplained gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain or discomfort.
