Postprandial gallbladder filling: relation to gastrointestinal motility

A technique of combined hepatobiliary scintigraphy and gastrointestinal motility recordings was used to study the relationship between gallbladder dynamics and gastrointestinal motility recordings in the postprandial state in eight healthy male volunteers. In all, a fed-like motility pattern was observed after ingestion of a standard meal, and all activity from the HIDA-scintigraphy was diverted to the duodenum. Gallbladder radioactivity on the scintigram was not seen until 145 to 249 min after ingestion, except for two cases in which an early and transient activity was seen. Together with increasing gallbladder radioactivity, characteristic changes in duodenal motility occurred. In five subjects a decrease in motility index was encountered with a motility curve resembling phase I of the interdigestive migrating motor complex. In one subject it was associated with the apperance of a phase-III complex, and in two subjects it occurred without any changes in motility index. In conclusion, liver bile is diverted to the duodenum in the postprandial period. Refilling of the gallbladder is associated with changes in intestinal motility from a fed-like pattern to interdigestive migrating motor complexes. 15 refs