The Effect of Glucose on Plasma Immunoreactive Secretin in Normal Man and after Gastrectomy or Pancreatectomy

Abstract

Oral intake of glucose increased the peripheral plasma immunoreactive secretin (IRS) concentration in patients after total pancreatectomy with duodenectomy (p < 0.05) and in patients after total gastrectomy (p < 0.01). In young healthy volunteers and in patients after partial gastrectomy, no effect on IRS was observed. Intravenous glucose reduced the IRS concentration in pancreatectomized patients (p < 0.05), whereas IRS was only reduced in young healthy volunteers when intravenous glucose was followed by oral glucose after an interval of 10 min (p < 0.025). The abnormal IRS release in pancreatectomized patients and in patients after total gastrectomy might be due to rapid intestinal passage and/or increased splanchnic blood flow induced by hypertonic glucose. A third possibility is that a glucose-induced increase in bile flow might release IRS.

Key-words:

• Cancer, pancreatic
• duodenectomy
• gastrectomy
• glucose
• insulin
• man
• pancreatectomy
• pancreatitis, chronic
• radioimmunoassay
• secretin
• ulcer, peptic