Gastrointestinal System Flashcards
What are the functions of the gastrointestinal tract?
Mechanical disruption of food, temporary food store, chemical digestion and disruption, kill pathogens, absorption of nutrients, elimination of waste material.
How is fluid balance maintained?
Somatic and autonomic neural control, histamine, hormones and vasoactive substances alter blood flow and acid secretion, enzymes produced for chemical digestion.
What is saliva?
Hypotonic fluid containing water, mucus and solids such as enzymes, bacterial flora, antibodies and epithelial cells.
What is the function of baseline saliva secretion?
Maintenance of hydration, reduces friction, prevents bacterial build up (halitosis) and maintenance of dental hygiene.
Name the main salivary glands and the type of secretion they produce:
Sublingual- mixed secretions
Submandibular- mixed secretions, drains via Wharton’s duct
Parotid- serous secretions, drains via Stenson’s duct
What are the functions of saliva?
Mineralisation, moistening and lubrication of food, taste perception, initiation of digestion, soft tissue repair, dilution and clearance of oral sugars, detoxification, buffering.
Describe the secretory unit:
Isotonic saliva produced in the acinus of secretory cells, travels along secretory duct lined by intercalating cells, ions reabsorbed in striated duct so solution becomes hypotonic. Myoepithelial cells may aid contraction and secretion.
What is swallowing/deglutition?
Series of orderly processes by which substances are passed from the mouth to the pharynx and then the oesophagus
What may cause dysphagia?
Congenital abnormalities, stroke injury, hypertrophy of pharyngeal tonsils
What are the oesophageal sphincters?
UOS- cricopharyngeus muscle
LOS- physiological sphincter at T10 level controlled by vagus nerve
Oral phase of swallowing:
Voluntary control
Bolus formed and positioned at back of tongue
Reflex action pushes food back via receptors of palatoglossal arch
Pharyngeal phase of swallowing:
Soft palate raises and closes opening between naso and oropharynx
Epiglottis is sealed
Tongue moves food into oesophagus
Oesophageal phase of swallowing:
LOS relaxes
UOS constricts
Primary peristaltic wave is initiated, distension of oesophagus initiates a secondary wave if the first is insufficient
What is a hiatus hernia?
Insufficient tightness of the diaphragmatic opening allows a part of the stomach to enter the thorax
What is the peritoneal cavity?
Potential space between visceral and parietal peritoneum that contains a small amount of fluid.
What is the structure of the primitive gut tube?
Foregut and hind gut are blind diverticula
Runs from the stomatodeum to the proctodeum
Opening to the yolk sac at the umbilicus
What is the blood supply to the gut?
Foregut from the coeliac trunk
Midgut from the superior mesenteric artery
Hind gut from the inferior mesenteric artery
What is the intraembryonic coelum?
Begins as one large cavity and is then subdivided by the future diaphragm
What is a mesentery?
Double layer of peritoneum suspending the gut tube from the abdominal wall allowing conduit of blood and nerve supply, formed from condensation of the splanchnic mesoderm.
What are the outcomes of the rotation of the stomach?
Greater and lesser curvature lie on the right and left hand side
Cardia and pyloric move horizontally pushing the greater curve inferiorly
Puts vagus nerves anterior and posterior
Moves the lesser sac behind the stomach
Creates greater omentum
How does the foregut develop?
Respiratory diverticulum forms in ventral wall at junction with the pharyngeal gut placing the oesophagus dorsally
Liver, pancreas and biliary system are formed in the ventral mesentery (foregut association only)
Liver develops from hepatic bud, falciform ligament attaches to ventral body wall
Duodenal lumen is obliterated and recanalised
What are the muscles of the abdominal wall (superficial to deep)?
Rectus abdominis
External oblique
Internal oblique
Transversus abdominis
What is a hernia?
Protrusion of abdominal viscera into abdominal wall
What is the difference between a direct and indirect inguinal hernia?
Direct hernia exits onto the wall via the weak area ‘Hesselbach’s triangle’
Indirect hernia follows the inguinal canal and passes through the deep inguinal ring
What are the borders of Hesselbach’s triangle?
Epigastric vessels, inguinal ligament (base) and rectus abdominis (medially)
What is the path of the inguinal canal?
From the deep inguinal ring to the superficial inguinal ring, is the pathway from abdominal wall to external genitalia
What is meant by a Richter’s hernia?
Inguinal or femoral, progresses more rapidly to gangrene but obstruction is less frequent and the entire lumen is not compromised
What is divarication of recti?
Midline lump that only appears on transition from sitting to standing, is common post-partum
What is the spigellian fascia?
Aponeurotic layer between rectus abdominis and linea semilunares
What is the difference between strangulation and incarceration?
Strangulation occurs when the blood supply is constricted by sweeping and congestion as to arrest its circulation
Incarceration means that the hernia cannot return to the abdominal cavity when pushed
How is a hernia repaired?
Obtain primary closure of muscle layer
Lichtenstein repair
Laparoscopic reinforcements
Use of specialised meshes
What is receptive relaxation?
The orad stomach allows entry of food without increasing intragastric pressure to prevent reflux
What is the blood supply to the stomach?
Lesser curvature- right gastric artery
Greater curvature- right and left gastroepiploic arteries
Duodenum- gastroduodenal artery
What cells are responsible for control of acid secretion and what are their functions?
Parietal cells produce HCl and intrinsic factor
G cells produce gastrin
Enterochromaffin like cells produce histamine
Chief cells produce pepsinogen
D cells produce somatostatin
Mucus cells produce mucus
What hormones increase H+ secretion?
Gastrin
Histamine
Acetylcholine (vagal stimulation)
How is acid secretion decreased?
Somatostatin release inhibits G cells (D cells stimulated by low pH when stomach empty)
Reduced vagal stimulation
What happens during the cephalic phase of digestion?
Preparatory- smelling, tasting, chewing
Direct stimulation of parietal cells by vagus nerve
Stimulation of G cells by vagus nerve via gastrin-releasing peptide
What happens in the gastric phase of digestion?
Distension of stomach stimulates vagus nerve
Amino acids and peptides stimulate G cells
Food acts as buffer and removes somatostatin inhibition by increasing pH
What happens in the intestinal phase of digestion?
Chyme initially stimulates gastrin
Inhibition of G cells by somatostatin
What are the stomach’s defences?
Mucus/bicarbonate layer adheres to epithelium (can be dissolved by alcohol)
High turnover of epithelial cells
Prostaglandins maintain mucosal blood flow (inhibited by NSAIDs)
What pharmacological treatments act on the stomach?
H2 blockers e.g. Ranitidine
Proton pump inhibitors e.g. Omeprazole
What is the primary intestinal loop?
Elongation of the midgut forms a loop with the SMA as its axis, is connected to the yolk sac by the Vitelline duct
What is physiological herniation?
The cavity is too small in the 6th week to accommodate the midgut and the liver, so the midgut herniates into the proximal umbilical cord.
The cranial limb returns to the cavity first, and the Cecal bud descends to form the ascending colon
What is Meckel’s diverticulum?
Approximately 2 feet from the ileocecal valve and can contain ectopic gastric/pancreatic tissue. Outpouching of a hollow structure, is the vestigial remnant of the omphalomesenteric (Vitelline) duct
What is pyloric stenosis?
Hypertrophy of the pylorus muscle not a failure of recanalisation
Where does recanalisation occur?
Oesophagus, bile duct and small intestine
What is gastroschisis and how does it differ from omphalcoele?
Gastroschisis is a failure of closure of the abdominal wall during folding of the embryo leaving the gut tube and its derivatives outside the body
Omphalcoele/exampholos is the persistence of physiological herniation and so has a covering of skin and subcutaneous tissue
What is the significance of the pectinate line?
Divides anal canal into two histologically distinct superior and inferior parts that have different arterial and nervous supply and venous and lymphatic drainage
What is the cloaca?
End of the hind gut separated into urogenital sinus and anorectal canal by the urorectal septum
What is the perineal body?
Where the urorectal septum fuses with the proctodeum (anal pit)
What is the arterial, venous and nervous supply above the pectinate line?
IMA
Pelvic parasympathetic innervation (S2-4)
Drains to internal iliac nodes
Only has stretch sensation
What are the features of the anus below the pectinate line?
Pudendal artery
Somatic pudendal nerves (S2-4)
Drainage to superficial inguinal nodes
Touch, temperature and pain sensitive
Where might gut pain be referred to?
Foregut produces epigastric pain
Midgut produces periumbilical pain
Hind gut produces suprapubic pain
What are the derivatives of the dorsal mesentery?
Greater omentum
Gastrolineal ligament from stomach to spleen
Leinorenal ligament from spleen to kidney
Mesocolon
Mesentery proper
What are the derivatives of the ventral mesentery?
Lesser omentum
Falciform ligament
What is gastroesophageal reflux disease (GORD)?
Weakness of the lower oesophageal sphincter causing heartburn, cough, sore throat, dysphagia, raised intragastric pressure, hiatus hernia and Barrett’s oesophagus (metaplasia)
What can cause acute gastritis?
NSAIDs
Alcohol
Chemotherapy
Bile reflux
What causes chronic gastritis?
Helicobacter pylori infection
Antibodies to parietal cells leading to pernicious anaemia
Chronic alcohol abuse
What is peptic ulcer disease?
Extends through muscular is mucosa, is most common in the first part of the duodenum and lesser curve of stomach
Can be caused by excess stomach acid, H. pylori and NSAIDs
Causes bleeding, anaemia, melina, haemetemis, weight loss
What are the features of Helicobacter pylori?
Faecal-oral transmission
Gram negative, helix shaped, microaerophilic
Produces urease that produces NH4+ ions to increase local pH
Flagellum allows adherence to epithelia
Releases cytotoxins that cause epithelial injury
Degrades mucus layer
Promotes inflammatory response
What is Zollinger-Ellison syndrome?
Non-beta islet cell gastrin secreting tumour of the pancreas that can be a part of multiple endocrine neoplasia causing proliferation of the parietal cells and increased H+ producing leading to severe ulceration of the stomach and small bowel
What can trigger stress ulceration?
Severe burns, raised intracranial pressure, sepsis, trauma, multi-organ failure
What is contained in the Porto hepatis?
Hepatic portal artery and vein
Bile duct
What stimulates the pancreatic acinus to produce digestive enzymes?
Cholecystokinin (CCK)
Where is the sphincter of oddi located?
Second part of the duodenum, entry from pancreas
What secretions are produced by the pancreas?
Enzymes as zymogens including proteases, amylase and lipases Bicarbonate ions (high flow rate increases secretion)