BODY SYSTEMS AFFECTED

What Is Chronic Constipation Alternating With Diarrhea? Chronic constipation alternating with diarrhea is an intestinal motility disorder, or irregularity, characterized by alteration in stool formation, consistency, and evacuation which results in a bowel movement that consists of some hard or balled ...

What Is Volvulus? Volvulus is twisting of a loop(s) of bowel onto itself which effectively closes it thus preventing digested matter from passing and causing engorgement of the closed loop with gas and fluid. Q: How does the bowel get ...

What Is Postbulbar Duodenal Ulceration/Stenosis? Postbulbar duodenal ulceration is a chronic inflammatory disorder characterized by thickening of the intestinal lining with excoriation penetrating the muscularis mucosae (muscle layer of the intestine) associated with villous atrophy. The ulcer is well-defined. Stenosis ...

What Is Milk Intolerance (Bovine Beta Casein Enteropathy)? Bovine beta casein enteropathy is characterized by raised serum IgA antibodies to bovine beta casein found by blood testing and damage to mucosa of the jejunum found by biopsy. The jejunum is the second ...

What Is Maltose Intolerance? Maltose intolerance is an enzymopathy (enzyme failure) characterized by inability of the gut to properly break down maltose sugar molecules in food due to low maltase enzyme activity of the small intestinal lining. Q: What is ...

What Is Lactose Intolerance? Lactose intolerance is a well known symptom of carbohydrate malabsorption characterized by inability to properly digest lactose, the sugar in milk, due to low lactase digesting activity in the small intestine. Lactase is an enzyme produced ...

What Is Chronic Ulcerative Jejunitis? Chronic ulcerative jejunitis is a disease of the small intestine that is characterized by inflammation and ulceration of the mucosal lining of the jejunum. Q: How do inflammation and ulceration affect digestion in the jejunum? A: ...

What Is Small Intestinal Edema? Small intestinal edema is characterized by fluid accumulation within the intestinal mucosa so that the intestinal wall appears thick and swollen. Intestinal edema hampers peristalsis that can result in pain and gas build-up. Peristalsis is ...

What Are Erosions In The Second Part Of The Duodenum? Erosions in the second part of the duodenum typically are superficial excoriations (sores) in the mucosal lining that do not penetrate into the muscle layer as does an ulcer. Of ...

What Is Acute Diarrhea? Acute diarrhea is a small intestinal motility disorder characterized by excessively rapid movement of intestinal contents through the small intestine with excessive loss of fluid and electrolytes that leads rapidly to a life threatening hypokalemia (low ...

What Is Carbohydrate Malabsorption? Carbohydrate malabsorption is a digestive disorder characterized by the inability to properly digest and absorb carbohydrates within the small intestine to supply needed energy to the body. Q: What carbohydrates should be normally digested and absorbed? A: In normal ...

What Is Chronic Or Recurrent Abdominal Pain? Abdominal pain is characterized by pain anywhere in the abdominal cavity between the chest and groin. This region is often referred to as the belly. Abdominal pain, or bellyache, indicates that something is ...

What Is Chronic Abdominal Distention? Abdominal distention, or bloating, is characterized by enlargement in normal size of abdomen not due to fatty tissue. Q: Why does the abdomen enlarge? A: The abdomen enlarges because the bowel is dysfunctional. Loops of ...

What Is Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis? Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is an uncommon, slowly progressive bile duct disease that results in stagnation or build-up of bile in the liver, called cholestasis. Primary sclerosing cholangitis is characterized by sclerosis, or scarring inflammation ...

What Is Primary Biliary Cirrhosis? Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a biliary tract disease characterized by chronic cholestasis (build-up of bile) and gradual destruction of bile ducts within the liver, called intrahepatic bile ducts, caused by chronic inflammation. Primary biliary ...