Complete cervical or thoracic spinal cord transections delay gastric emptying and gastrointestinal transit of liquid in awake rats

Study Design: To determine the changes on gastric emptying and gastrointest inal transit of liquid throughout the first week after spinal cord transect ion (SCT) in rats. Methods: Male Wistar rats (n=121) were fasted for 16 h and a complete SCT o r laminectomy was performed between C-7 and T-1 (cervical group) or between T-4 and T-5 (thoracic group). Dye recovery in the stomach, proximal, mid a nd distal small intestine was determined 30 min, 6 h, 1, 3 or 7 days after surgery. The test meal (1.5 mi of a phenol red solution, 0.5 mg/ml in 5% gl ucose) was intragastrically administered and the animals sacrificed by cerv ical dislocation 10 min later. Results: Cervical SCT increased dye recovery in the stomach (P<0.05) by 70. 1, 78.7, 34.2, 41.3 and 50.9% while it decreased recovery in the mid small intestine (P<0.05) by 87.1, 85.1, 74.8, 59.5 and 80.1%, respectively 30 min , 6 h, 1, 3 and 7 days after SCT. Thoracic SCT increased gastric recovery ( P<0.05) by 43.5, 67.6, 51.2, 75.4 and 38.9% while it decreased recovery in the mid small intestine (P<0.05) by 100, 100, 45.6, 100 and 66.6%, respecti vely 30 min, 6 h, 1, 3 and 7 days;after SCT. h separate group was submitted to laminectomy + bilateral sciatic nerve transection (paraplegic sham). Ga stric emptying and gastrointestinal transit were not inhibited in this grou p. Conclusion: In summary, gastric emptying and gastrointestinal transit of li quid are inhibited throughout the first week after high SCT in awake rats.