title: Electrophysiological principles of motility disturbances in the small and large intestines--review of the literature and personal experience.
abstract: Motility disturbances of the small and large intestines are based on changes in the smooth-muscle potential, whereby the number of amplitudes and configuration of slow waves and of spike potentials as well as pattern, speed of propagation, and duration of the MMC are of crucial importance. Whereas the electromechanical principles of intestinal motility are sufficiently known, changes in the electromechanical activity in clinically manifest motility disturbances have as yet not been given due regard. Only recently, electromechanical measurements in the upper gastrointestinal tract and colon were performed in several gastrointestinal diseases of internal medicine. In the small intestine, changes in slow waves, spike potentials, and the MMC could be disclosed which are typical for hyperthyrosis, hypothyrosis, irritable bowel syndrome, bacterial diarrhea, primary and secondary intestinal pseudo-obstruction, short-bowel syndrome, postoperative bowel atonia, mechanical bowel obstruction, vagotomy, and diabetic enteropathy with disturbed gastric emptying. Regarding the colon, a disturbance in the electromechanical characteristics was found in irritable bowel syndrome, bacterial overgrowth in the small bowel, chronic constipation, and idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction, which is probably identical with the clinical picture of adynamic ileus. Based on a thorough examination of the literature and on own results from electromechanical measurements in children, electromechanical disturbances have been narrowly defined.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Surgical Clinic, City Children's Hospital of Cologne, FRG.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Holschneider
mesh_terms: D003106:Colon / Q000503:physiopathology; D003108:Colonic Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology; D004576:Electromyography; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005769:Gastrointestinal Motility; D006801:Humans; D007410:Intestinal Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007420:Intestine, Large / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000502:physiology