The mean cumulative fraction absorbed-time profiles of paracetamol as an index of gastric emptying.

The purpose of this study was to measure gastric emptying by using the cumulative fraction absorbed-time profiles of paracetamol. To evaluate the validity of the method as an index of gastric emptying, six healthy male volunteers were entered into an ethically approved trial using different regimens of cholinergic enhancing (i.e. metoclopramide and neostigmine) and blocking agents (i.e. atropine and pirenzepine) and the results were compared with the bioavailability (i.e. Cmax, Tmax, AUC) parameters of paracetamol as an index of gastric emptying. The cumulative fractional absorption of paracetamol appears to be a valuable index for the measurement of gastric emptying.