Gastrointestinal System
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Disorders of The Digestive System
Inflammatory Disorders Appendicitis is an acute inflammation of the appendix. First symptoms include referred pain in the umbilical region and nausea. Later, pain is localized in the right lower quadrant of the abdominal wall. Surgical removal of the appendix is the standard treatment. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
Digestive System
It can be helpful to think of the digestive system as a tube running through the body with an opening at each end, the mouth at the top and the anus at the bottom. The tube isn’t a neat, constant shape throughout its course. It swells into
Mouth and Esophageal Motility
Mastication, or chewing, mixes food with salivary mucus. This action subdivides food and exposes ingested starch to salivary amylase to begin the digestive process. Mastication is not essential for normal GI function but facilitates the process. Swallowing propels food from the mouth into the esophagus. The initiation
Gastric Motility
Stomach The stomach is anatomically and functionally divided into the fundus, body, and antrum. The fundus and body are highly distensible and act as reservoir for the ingested meal. A 1.5 L volume increase causes only a small increase in pressure in the lumen of the stomach.
Small Intestinal Motility
The small intestine is divided into duodenum, jejunum, and ileum, with the duodenum and jejunum being the major site of digestion and absorption. Chyme takes 2 to 4 hours to move through the 5 m of the small intestine. Segmentation, which mixes intestinal contents and enhances contact
