Exploratory study on the impact of intraesophageal pressure on quality of life in patients following total gastrectomy: a retrospective cohort study

Abstract Background The usefulness of high-resolution impedance manometry (HRIM) in patients who underwent total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y (R-Y) anastomosis has never been well validated. This study aimed to investigate whether intraesophageal pressure affects quality of life in patients who underwent total gastrectomy with R-Y anastomosis. Methods The participants comprised 12 patients who underwent total gastrectomy for gastric cancer between October 2014 and July 2022 and underwent a postsurgical HRIM examination. The association between the HRIM data and Postgastrectomy Syndrome Assessment Scale-37 (PGSAS-37) questionnaires was analyzed. Results Esophageal body motility was normal in almost all patients. The anastomosis shape (circular stapler and overlap method with linear stapler) did not influence intraesophageal pressure. The integrated relaxation pressure and lower esophageal sphincter (LES) residual pressure during swallowing-induced relaxation were involved in “diarrhea subscale” scores (p = 0.0244 and p = 0.0244, respectively). The average maximum intrabolus pressure was not involved in postgastrectomy symptom. The contractile front velocity correlated with the “indigestion subscale,” “diarrhea subscale,” and “constipation subscale” (p = 0.0408, p = 0.0143, and p = 0.0060, respectively). The distal latency, i.e., the time from upper esophageal sphincter relaxation to contractile deceleration, was also associated with the “abdominal pain subscale” (p = 0.0399). LES pressure and esophageal body motility affected patients’ quality of life after total gastrectomy. Conclusions HRIM for the evaluation of intraesophageal pressure is useful for the functional assessment of esophagojejunostomy with the R-Y reconstruction after total gastrectomy.