Gastric emptying test: a useful functional study rarely applied.

Details about gastric physiology and pathophysiology are described. Other methods, some of them not used today, are also mentioned. Gastric emptying by radionuclides is important for checking normal function of the upper digestive system. The fried eggs etc. technique and not the liquid meal technique is preferred. In conclusion, gastric emptying by radionuclides, although other techniques have emerged, still has a diagnostic role in gastroplegia and in other mainly functional gastric disorders.