DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Ann Marie C. Uy MD
Function:

To prepare food for intake

by body cells
Stores undigested waste
materials and then
eliminates them from the
body
 Digestion

takes place in the

digestive tract proper,
which extends from
the mouth to the
anus
 Digestion

Peristalsis,
wave-like contractions
of the organ walls,
moves food through the
digestive tract and also
moves undigested waste
material out of the body
 Digestive Tract

a.k.a Alimentary canal or Gastrointestional tract (GI)

long tube modified into separate organs with special functions
 Mouth to the stomach
Mouth / oral cavity
Where digestion begins
Food is chewed into small bits by
teeth
Mastication
The process of chewing
done together with tongue, lips,
cheeks, and palate also help to
break up food and mix it with
saliva, secretion that moistens
the food.
 Mouth to the stomach
Peristalsis moves the food through the
esophagus and into the stomach.
Lower esophageal sphincter (LES) or
“cardiac sphincter”
> contracts to keep stomach
contents from refluxing (flowing
backward).
In the stomach, food is further broken
down as it is churned and mixed with
secretions containing the enzyme pepsin
and powerful hydrochloric acid (HCl), both
of which break down proteins. The
partially digested food then passes
through the stomach’s lower portion, the
pylorus, into the intestine.
 Small Intestine
Duodeum
Where food leaving the
stomach enters
1st portion of the small
intestine

Jejunum and ileum

Small intestines remaining
sections wherein digestion is
completed.
 Large intestine

This part of the digestive tract begins in the lower

right region of the abdomen with a small pouch, the
cecum, to which the appendix is attached.
The large intestine continues as the colon, travels
upward along the right side of the abdomen as the
ascending colon, crosses below the stomach as the
transverse colon, and then continues down the left
side of the abdomen as the descending colon.
As food is pushed through the colon, water is
reabsorbed, and stool or feces is formed. This waste
material passes into the S-shaped sigmoid colon
and is stored in the rectum until eliminated through
the anus.
Root for digestive tract
Root for digestive tract
 Clinical Aspects of Digestive Tract
Infection
Mouth
> bacterial infection – tooth decay and caries,
gingivitis, peridontitis
Stomach and intestines
> gastroenteritis, nausea, diarrhea, and
emesis(vomiting) > typhoid, cholera and dysentery
Appendicitis
> results from infection of the appendix, often
secondary
to its obstruction. Surgery is necessary to avoid rupture
and
 ULCERS

lesion of the skin or a mucous membrane

marked by inflammation and tissue damage.
Treatment: - antibiotics
Diagnosis - endoscopy
Peptic ulcers
> caused by the damaging action of gastric juices, also
called peptic juices, on the lining of the GI tract.
> appears in the first part off the duodenum
> caused by Helicobacter pylori
 Cancer
Leukoplakia - white patches on Colorectal cancers are staged
mucous membranes, often according to Dukes
results from smoking or other classification, ranging from A
irritants and is an early sign of to C according to severity.
cancer in up to 25 percent of
cases. Endoscopes named for the
specific area in which they are
Colon and rectum – are the
most common sites for GI tract used,
cancer (colorectal cancers). proctoscope (rectum),
- sign is bleeding in the sigmoidoscope (sigmoid colon
intestine, detected by testing ), and colonoscope (colon)
the stool for blood. (Occult)
small amt which are hidden
 Obstructions
Hernia
> protrusion of an organ
through an abnormal opening.
> inguinal hernia - The most
common type
> hiatal hernia, part of the
stomach moves upward into the
chest cavity through the space
(hiatus) in the diaphragm through
which the esophagus passes.
Often no symptoms, but it may
result in chest pain, dysphagia
(difficulty in swallowing), or reflux
(backflow) of stomach contents
into the esophagus.
 Obstructions

Pyloric stenosis,
> the opening between the
stomach and small intestine is
too narrow.
> occurs in infants and in
boys more often than in girls.
> A sign is projectile
vomiting.
> Surgery may be needed to
correct it.
 Obstructions

Intussusception
> slipping of an
intestinal segment into a part
below it;
volvulus
> twisting of the
intestine
ileus
> intestinal obstruction
often caused by lack of
peristalsis.
Hemorrhoids
are varicose veins in
the rectum
associated with pain,
bleeding, and, in
some cases, rectal
prolapse.
 Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
refers to reflux of gastric juices
into the esophagus due to
weakness at the gastroesophageal
junction, specifically the LES (lower
esophageal sphincter)
These acidic secretions irritate the
lining of the esophagus and even
the throat and mouth if propelled
upward by regurgitation.
heartburn- a GERD symptom
- an upward-radiating burning
sensation behind the sternum, does
not involve the heart, but is
experienced in the area near the
heart
 Barrett syndrome or Barrett esophagus

- Persistent reflux esophagitis

may cause injury to the
esophageal lining.
- esophageal mucosa is
gradually replaced with
epithelium resembling that of
the stomach or intestines.
- has no early symptoms, but
possible complications include
esophageal spasms, formation
of scar tissue, esophageal
strictures, and increased risk of
cancer.
 Inflammatory Intestinal Disease

Crohn disease is a chronic Ulcerative colitis involves a

inflammation of the intestinal wall, continuous inflammation of the
usually in the ileum and colon, colon’s lining that begins in the
causing pain, diarrhea, abscess, rectum and extends proximally
and often formation of an
abnormal passageway, or fistula.
 Inflammatory Intestinal Disease

Celiac disease - is characterized

by the inability to absorb foods
containing gluten, a protein found
in wheat.
- Mucosal inflammation
diminishes the intestinal villi and
interferes with absorption.
- treated with a gluten-free
diet.
 Inflammatory Intestinal Disease

Diverticulitis most commonly affects

the colon.
Diverticula are small pouches in the
intestinal wall that commonly appear
with age.
The presence of these pouches is
termed diverticulosis, which has been
attributed to a diet low in fiber.
Treated with a high-fiber diet, stool
softeners, and drugs (antispasmodics)
to reduce motility. Diverticular
infections are treated with antibiotics
 ACCESSORY ORGANS

Hepatitis
- most often caused by viral infection.
5 types:
Hepatitis A virus (HAV)
- is the most common hepatitis virus.
- spread by fecal–oral contamination, often by food handlers,
and in
crowded, unsanitary conditions.
- acquired by eating contaminated food, especially seafood.
 ACCESSORY ORGANS
Hepatitis B virus (HBV)
-spread by blood and other body fluids.
-may be transmitted sexually, by sharing injection
needles, and by close interpersonal contact. Infected
individuals may become carriers of the disease. Most patients
recover, but the disease may be serious, even fatal, and may
lead to liver cancer.
Hepatitis C
-is spread through blood and blood products or by close
contact with an infected person.
 ACCESSORY ORGANS

Hepatitis D, the delta virus,

- is highly pathogenic but infects only those already infected with
hepatitis B.
Hepatitis E, like HAV, is spread by contaminated food and water. It
has caused epidemics in Asia, Africa, and Mexico.

Jaundice, or icterus, is a symptom of hepatitis and other diseases of

the liver and biliary system. It appears as yellowness of
the skin, whites of the eyes, and mucous membranes due to the
presence of bile pigments, mainly bilirubin, in the blood.
 ACCESSORY ORGANS (liver)
Cirrhosis is a chronic liver disease -
characterized by hepatomegaly, edema,
ascites (fluid in the abdomen), and
jaundice.
Portal hypertension, complication of
cirrhosis, -increased pressure in the
hepatic portal system, the vessels that
carry blood from the other abdominal
organs to the liver.
Portal hypertension causes
splenomegaly and the formation of
varices (varicose veins) in the distal
esophagus with possible hemorrhage.
The main cause of cirrhosis is the
excess consumption of alcohol.
 ACCESSORY ORGANS ( gallbladder)
Cholelithiasis - refers to the presence of stones in the gallbladder or
bile ducts, which is usually associated with cholecystitis,
inflammation of the gallbladder.
- is characterized by biliary colic (pain) in the right upper
quadrant (RUQ), nausea, and vomiting.
- composed of cholesterol, an ingredient of bile
- Drugs may dissolve gallstones, but often the cure is
removal of the gallbladder in a cholecystectomy.
- Ultrasonography, radiography, and magnetic resonance
imaging are used to diagnose gallstones
- Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP)
is a technique for viewing the pancreatic and bile ducts
 ACCESSORY ORGANS (Pancreas)

Pancreatitis, - inflammation of the

pancreas, - result from alcoholabuse,
drug toxicity, bile obstruction, infections,
and other causes.
- Blood tests in show increased
levels of the enzymes amylase and lipase.
Glucose and bilirubin levels may also be
elevated.
- Often the disease subsides with
only symptomatic treatment.