Studies on intragastric PCO2 at rest and during exercise as a marker of intestinal perfusion in patients with chronic heart failure.

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate mesenteric ischaemia by determining intragastric PCO(2) (iPCO(2)) with gastric tonometry during rest and exercise stress testing in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). In CHF inflammatory immune activation is hypothesized to result from a chronic endotoxin challenge due to bacterial translocation of hypoperfused intestinal mucosa.

Methods And Results: In 10 patients with CHF and ten healthy controls a tonometry catheter was inserted into the stomach.