13C breath tests offer a non-invasive, non-radioactive alternative to many other diagnostic techniques. Gastroparesis (delayed gastric emptying) is often diagnosed via scintigraphy –
a costly, cumbersome procedure that must be performed in
specialized outpatient centers and exposes the patient to radiation-emitting compounds. Alternatively, the rate of emptying can be much more easily determined by administering the patient with a 13C labeled substrate, and monitoring
the expelled 13CO2
in the patient’s breath on a Sercon ABCA.
