Gender Differences in Gastroparesis

Abstract

Delayed gastric emptying, known as gastroparesis, is a chronic disorder that disproportionately affects women over men. We reviewed studies focusing on female predominance of gastroparesis and various hypothesis for the development and presentation in such differences. Females are at a disadvantage for several factors, including physiologic delay at baseline, cyclic changes in sex hormones attributing to symptoms as well as dynamic results of gastric emptying tests, and interplay with nitric oxide dysfunction, linking it to functional gastrointestinal disorders, thus higher symptom severity, and a potential barrier to treatment response. Further studies need to be conducted to investigate gender differences in the development and presentation of gastroparesis, with the intent to develop and implement customized treatment for gender-specific variations in gastric delay.