Small intestinal motility

Abstract

Purpose of review: To review recently published studies presenting novel and relevant information on small intestinal motility in humans and animals.

Recent findings: Mechanisms of intestinal dysmotility in patients with pseudoobstruction and colonic inertia are becoming better clarified. The role of enteric flora in health and disease is an important and rapidly evolving area that will no doubt yield significant advances in the evaluation and treatment of many digestive disorders. The role of bacterial overgrowth in irritable bowel syndrome requires further study. The mechanisms underlying postoperative ileus are becoming both better understood and increasingly complex. Peripheral opioid antagonists may represent an important therapeutic advance in the treatment of ileus. Cannabinoids also appear to play a role in ileus and this echoes our rapidly evolving understanding of these compounds in the regulation of motility.

Summary: Small intestinal motility remains an understudied area. Recent publications have shed additional light on myogenic, neural, and hormonal control mechanisms.