The evolution of magnetic resonance enterography in the assessment of motility disorders in children.

Gastrointestinal symptoms including constipation, diarrhoea, pain and bloating represent some of the most common clinical problems for patients. These symptoms can often be managed with cheap, widely available medication or will spontaneously resolve. However, for many patients, chronic GI symptoms persist and frequently come to dominate their lives. At one end of the spectrum there is Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) with a clearly defined but expensive treatment pathway. Contrasting with this is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), likely a collection of pathologies, has a poorly standardised pathway with unsatisfactory clinical outcomes. Managing GI symptoms in adult populations is a challenge. The clinical burden of gastrointestinal disease is also prevalent in paediatric populations and perhaps even harder to treat. In this review we explore some of the recent advances in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study the gastrointestinal tract. Complex in both its anatomical structure and its physiology we are likely missing key physiological markers of disease through relying on symptomatic descriptors of gut function. Using MRI we might be able to characterise previously opaque processes, such as non-propulsive contractility, that could lead to changes in how we understand even common symptoms like constipation. This review explores recent advances in the field in adult populations and examines how this safe, objective and increasingly available modality might be applied to paediatric populations.

Sequential incremental doses of bisacodyl increase the diagnostic accuracy of colonic manometry.

BACKGROUND: Colonic manometry is the standard diagnostic modality for evaluating colonic motility in children. Intraluminal bisacodyl is routinely used to trigger high-amplitude propagating contractions (HAPCs), a feature of normal colonic motility. Usually, only a single dose (0.2 mg/kg) is suggested. We retrospectively explored whether the use of an additional higher (0.4 mg/kg) dose of bisacodyl increases the yield of colonic manometry. METHODS: In 103 children (median age: 8.8 years, range 3.2-15.7 years) with a diagnosis of slow transit constipation, colonic motility was recorded for 1 h before and 1 h after each of two incremental doses of bisacodyl (low, L, dose: 0.2 mg/kg, max 10 mg; high, H, dose: 0.4 mg/kg, max 20 mg) and the characteristics of HAPCs analyzed. KEY RESULTS: High-amplitude propagating contractions were seen in 85 children. H dose significantly increased the proportion of patients with fully propagated HAPCs (H dose: 57/103 [55%], L dose: 27/103 [26%], p < 0.001), paralleling the significant decrease in the proportion with partially propagated HAPCs (H dose: 29/103 [28%], L dose: 47/103 [46%], p < 0.01). Mean HAPC number significantly increased throughout the colon at H compared to L dose (7.2 ± 5.05 vs 5.6 ± 5.1, p < 0.05). Finally, the proportion of patients with normal pressure wave morphology of HAPCs significantly increased with higher dose (H dose: 55/85 [65%], L dose: 27/85 [32%], p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS & INTERFERENCES: An additional higher dose of bisacodyl during colonic manometry improves colonic neuromuscular function suggesting its use might improve interpretation and decision making in children with slow transit constipation.

Efficacy of the neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist aprepitant in children with cyclical vomiting syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Aprepitant (Emend, Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd, Haarlem, the Netherlands), a neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist, prevents vomiting in a range of conditions. No data are available on its use in children with cyclical vomiting syndrome (CVS). AIM: We investigated the efficacy of aprepitant as prophylactic treatment or acute intervention in CVS children refractory to conventional therapies. METHODS: Forty-one children (median age: 8 years) fulfilling NASPGHAN criteria treated acutely (RegA) or prophylactically (RegP) with aprepitant were retrospectively reviewed. Primary outcome was the clinical response (decrease in frequency and intensity of CVS episodes). Secondary outcomes were: number of CVS episodes/year, number of hospital admissions/year, CVS episode duration, number of vomits/h, symptom-free interval length (days), and school attendance percentage. The follow-up period was 18-60 months. RESULTS: Sixteen children received RegP and 25 RegA. One child on RegP stopped treatment due to severe migraine. At 12-months on intention-to-treat analysis, 13 children on RegP (81%) achieved either complete (3/16, 19%) or partial (10/16, 62%) clinical response. On RegA, 19 children (76%) had either complete (3/25, 12%) or partial (16/25, 64%) response (P = 0.8 vs. RegP). In both RegP and RegA, there was a significant decrease in CVS episodes/year, hospital admission number/year, CVS episode length, number of vomits/h, as well as an increase in symptom-free interval duration and school attendance percentage. Side effects were reported only in RegP (5/16, 31%) including hiccough (3/16, 19%), asthenia/fatigue (2/16, 12.5%), increased appetite (2/16, 12.5%), mild headache (1/16, 6%) and severe migraine (1/16, 6%). CONCLUSION: Aprepitant appears effective for both acute and prophylactic management of paediatric cyclical vomiting syndrome refractory to conventional therapies.