Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0014848 (achalasia)
 2,804 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Functional disroders are the most important cause for complaints in the gastrointestinal tract. Dysfunction may concern one or more physiologic properties like tonus, motility, secretion, sometimes also resorption and digestion, or their interaction. Functional disorders of the esophagus (esophagospasm and achalasia) become manifest as dysphagia. Halitosis, bad taste, burning tongue, and flatulent abdomen are frequent symptoms of functional disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. Irritable bowel syndrome is probably the functional disorder most freqently found in the gastrointestinal tract. Characteristic symptoms are pain in the lower and upper middle abdominal region, obstipation and/or diarrhea, flatulent abdomen, mucous discharge with the stools and urgent defecation with cramps relieved after discharge. Prognosis quoad vitam is good, the course, however, is subject to many changes. Therapie is symptomatic. Diagnostic and psychotherapeutic measures are intended to help remove carcinophobia and to overcome conflicts and fears.
 ...
PMID:[Functional disorders of the gastrointestinal tract (author's transl)]. 68 14

Most operations performed for peptic ulcer disease in the United States include vagotomy as part of the surgical procedure. This paper reviews the complications associated specifically with or increased in frequency and severity by this procedure. Included in this review are technical complications, gastric retention, recurrent ulceration, postvagotomy diarrhea, postvagotomy dysphagia and achalasia, postvagotomy biliary disease and nutritional problems. The frequency of these complications, their pathophysiology and therapeutic modalities available are reviewed. The main emphasis is on postvagotomy syndrome that can be treated medically and on the various treatment forms that have been suggested.
 ...
PMID:Complications of vagotomy. 69 13

Nervous control of gastrointestinal motility is extremely complex, is regulated by the enteric system, the "brain of the gut", and modulated by extrinsic nerves. This system with its multiplicity of transmitters and receptors does not always allow a clear interpretation of experimental data, especially with compounds lacking specificity. In this review the complex situation is described particularly in relation to receptor populations (cholinergic, adrenergic, dopamine, histamine, 5-hydroxytryptamine, opioid, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), prostanoid and dihydropyridine receptors), therapeutic aspects of drugs and their usefulness in children. Newer principles with known drugs and promising new compounds with a more appropriate kinetic or fewer side-effects, deriving from distinct pharmacological groups, as candidates for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders are considered e.g. anticholinergics (prifinium or actilonium bromide), adrenergic alpha 2-agonists (clonidine, lidamidine) for diarrhoea in diabetic neuropathy, adrenergic beta-blockers for shortening postoperative ileus (propranolol), dopamine receptor antagonists (metoclopramide, domperidone, alizapride) and another prokinetic substance (cisapride) which may be useful for a number of applications as gastro-oesophageal reflux, gastro-paresis, intestinal pseudo-obstruction, cystic fibrosis and constipation, morphine derivatives (e.g. loperamide) for intractable diarrhoea and calcium antagonists (e.g. nifedipine) for achalasia. Increasing experience in digestive tract pharmacology and reliable clinical studies will furthermore be the basis for a more specific and better tolerated therapy of gastrointestinal motility disorders in adults and children.
 ...
PMID:Rational pharmacotherapy of gastrointestinal motility disorders. 266 4

Late follow-up of 51 children operated on for the classical form of Hirschsprung's disease showed a great many unsatisfactory results. It is well known from the literature that achalasia of the anal sphincter is one of the most important causes. Twenty-five patients underwent redilatation of the anal sphincter. Complaints in the form of obstipation or diarrhoea remained in 40% of the cases after redilatation. Reinvestigation of the resected colon specimens using the conventional histological method showed the presence of ganglion cells in the proximal resection fragment in all patients. In the light of reports in the literature stating that despite normal histology, innervation disturbances can exist in the colon, we conducted a pilot study using polyclonal antibodies against S-100 protein. In three out of four patients with an adequate resection, in accordance with the conventional histological criteria, clear innervation abnormalities could be seen with the aid of polyclonal antibody staining.
 ...
PMID:Causes of late complications in children operated on for Hirschsprung's disease: a preliminary immunohistochemical investigation using polyclonal antibodies against S-100 protein. 280 Jul 18

We report identical male twins with secretory diarrhea, craniofacial abnormalities often found in G syndrome, hypospadias, and abnormalities of the cholinergic nervous system including achalasia, decreased tearing, corneal hypesthesia, positive Mecholyl test (eye and esophagus), and decreased sweating. The children also lacked fungiform papillae but were clinically distinct from patients with either the Riley-Day syndrome or acquired dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system. Assessment of autonomic nervous system function should be considered in infants with recurrent diarrhea or swallowing disorders or in children with morphologically characteristics suggesting G syndrome.
 ...
PMID:Congenital cholinergic nervous system dysfunction in identical twins. 719 89

A careful history can localize gastrointestinal motility disorders and suggest appropriate diagnostic tests. Dysphagia, odynophagia, heartburn and reflux have esophageal origins. The same symptoms occur in achalasia, a classic motor disorder of the lower esophageal sphincter, which can be diagnosed by barium swallow, endoscopy and esophageal motility studies. Nausea, vomiting, anorexia, bloating and abdominal pain are symptoms of motor disorders of the stomach and small intestine. When these symptoms are accompanied by unexplained right upper quadrant pain, elevated liver enzyme levels and unexplained recurrent pancreatitis, the diagnosis of impaired biliary motility is suggested. Colorectal motility disorders may present as abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation and/or fecal incontinence. If symptoms do not resolve with dietary changes and appropriate medications and the anatomy is normal on lower gastrointestinal studies, colorectal motility studies may be indicated.
 ...
PMID:Gastrointestinal motility disorders. 859 65

Acupuncture has been used for various gastrointestinal (GI) conditions. Voluminous data support the effect of acupuncture on the physiology of the GI tract, including acid secretion, motility, neurohormonal changes, and changes in sensory thresholds. Much of the neuroanatomic pathway of these effects has been identified in animal models. A large body of clinical evidence supports the effectiveness of acupuncture for suppressing nausea associated with chemotherapy, postoperative state, and pregnancy. Prospective randomized controlled trials have also shown the efficacy of acupuncture for analgesia for endoscopic procedures, including colonoscopy and upper endoscopy. Acupuncture has also been used for a variety of other conditions including postoperative ileus, achalasia, peptic ulcer disease, functional bowel diseases (including irritable bowel syndrome and nonulcer dyspepsia), diarrhea, constipation, inflammatory bowel disease, expulsion of gallstones and biliary ascariasis, and pain associated with pancreatitis. Although there are few prospective randomized clinical studies, the well-documented physiological basis of acupuncture effects on the GI tract, and the extensive history of successful clinical use of acupuncture, makes this a promising modality that warrants further investigation.
 ...
PMID:Acupuncture for gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary disorders. 1010 29

Progress in the pharmacotherapy of pediatric gastrointestinal diseases continued during 1998 despite ongoing obstacles encountered by clinicians and researchers. The major change involved warnings that cisapride, a widely used prokinetic agent, could cause potentially fatal arrythmias in susceptible people. The risk for children is unclear and a consensus of prescribing guidelines is needed. Excellent pediatric-oriented reviews have been published that summarize our knowledge of proton pump inhibitors, probiotics, 5-hydroxtryptamine-3 (5-HT3) antagonists, and the treatment of gastrointestinal infections and chronic abdominal pain. Triple medication therapy for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori is now the standard of care, but the optimal combination and duration of therapy needs to be determined. Also described are interesting developments requiring further confirmation: the treatments of infectious diarrhea with zinc; achalasia and Hirschsprung's disease with botulinum toxin; weight loss with megestrol acetate; and sialorrhea with glycopyrollate.
 ...
PMID:Update on medications used to treat gastrointestinal disease in children. 1055 90

We report a 2-8/12 year-old male who presented with symptoms resembling cystic fibrosis (failure to thrive, developmental delay and recurrent diarrhea) and had elevated sweat chloride concentration. Mucosal hyperpigmentation led to the diagnosis of adrenal insufficiency which was ultimately shown to be a component of triple A syndrome (achalasia, alacrima, adrenal insufficiency). Elevated sweat chloride concentration normalized after initiation of adrenal replacement therapy. We suggest that non-CF conditions causing elevated sweat chloride concentration should be considered in patients with atypical findings or who do not have objective evidence of pulmonary or exocrine pancreatic disease.
 ...
PMID:Triple A syndrome mimicking cystic fibrosis. 1071 61

Despite the extensive impact of autonomic function on the gastrointestinal system, there is little understanding of the mechanisms by which specific autonomic abnormalities translate into particular gastrointestinal complaints. Three logical alternatives include: (1) the underlying disorder affects the autonomic and gastrointestinal systems independently; (2) autonomic dysfunction alters gastrointestinal processing directly; (3) gastrointestinal manifestations arise as a delayed, indirect consequence of autonomic dysfunction. The major gastrointestinal manifestations of dysautonomia include esophageal dysmotility such as achalasia, gastroparesis, and small bowel bacterial overgrowth in the upper tract. Lower tract disorders include diarrhea, fecal incontinence, and constipation. Sorting through the varied causes of these disorders requires a careful history and examination in each patient. Supportive diagnostic studies may include radionuclide imaging, motility examination, and electrogastrography. Autonomic studies can (1) distinguish a purely enteric from a more generalized dysautonomia; (2) provide surrogate information about motility; (3) differentiate primary (e.g., multiple system atrophy) from secondary (e.g., irritable bowel syndrome) dysautonomias as the etiology of gastrointestinal symptoms. Several new strategies are available for the treatment of gastroparesis, constipation, irritable bowel, and sphincteric incontinence.
 ...
PMID:Evaluation and treatment of autonomic disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. 1508 66


1 2 Next >>