The Pathophysiology Gi System

The Gastrointestinal (GI) system is a series of hollow organs joined in a long twisting tube from the mouth to the anus called the Gastrointestinal Tract (GI tract). The hollow organs that makeup the GI system are the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and anus. The liver, pancreas and gallbladder are the solid accessory organs of the digestive system. The digestive system is a group of organs that work together to convert food into energy and basic nutrients to feed the entire body. Food passes through the GI tract inside the body that connects all of the organs. To achieve the true purpose of getting the body basic nutrients and energy the other six functions of the digestive system take place such as ingestion, secretion, mixing and movement, digestion, absorption and excretion. Individual components of the GI system

The Mouth is responsible for the intake of the food and inside the mouth are accessory organs that aid the digestion of food such as the tongue, teeth, and saliva gland. It starts with the mechanical breakdown of food by chewing threw the teeth, the tongue pushes the food to the back of the throat with saliva from the salivary glands. Then the saliva breaks down starch for the food to glide down into the esophagus.

After you swallow the food reaches the Esophagus that is part of the upper GI tract. The esophagus moves the food that was swallowed with the help of a series of muscles called the peristalsis into the stomach. At the end of the esophagus is the lower esophageal sphincter opens to let the food pass to the stomach and closer to trap food in the stomach.

Once the food is in the Stomach it starts mechanically and chemically breaking down with the secretion of hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes. As soon as the stomach breaks down the food, from mixing and mashing together the small pieces, that came in from the esophagus it created it into a more usable form called chyme. Chyme is the liquid mixture that then enters the duodenum of the small intestine by the pyloric sphincter that is at the inferior end of the stomach.

The Small Intestine is made up of three segments that are the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum this is the start of the lower Gi tract. The first section starts with a duodenum, it is the very top segment that carries the chyme from the stomach pyloric sphincter into the other section of the small intestine. While the chyme is being processed to go down into the other section the liver, gallbladder, and pancreas deliver secretion called bile to the duodenum, facilitating chemical digestion through the common bile duct. The duodenum is a c-shaped section that is responsible for the breakdown process. This then goes into the jejunum in which digestion and absorption occurs. It in turn empties into the final section of the small intestine, that carries nutrients into the bloodstream and empties the rest into the caecum portion of the large intestine, this section is the ileum. All of the main function of this organ is to break down the food mixture even more so the body can absorb all of the nutrients, vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

A last stop in the digestion process of the gastrointestinal system is the Large Intestine that consist of the appendix, caecum, ascending colon, transverse colon, decending colon, and sigmoid colon. The caecum is the expanded pouch that receives material from the small intestine and starts to compress food into faecal material. Then feces travels through the rest of the large intestine sections of the colon. Its function once it passes through the colon is to get the unwanted waste out of the body; absorb the rest of the water and minerals to get it into the blood. Bacteria is also serves a grand purpose in the large intestine by aiding in the breakdown of waste.

The nutrient-rich blood comes directly to the Liver for processing. It acts as a mechanical filter by filtering the blood that travels through the intestinal system, also detoxifying many metabolites including the breakdown of bilirubin and estrogen. However, the main role of the liver is to process the nutrients absorbed from the small intestine it does this by producing bile. The liver helps figure out how many nutrients will go to the rest of the body, and how many will stay behind in storage.

A small storage organ located inferior to the liver is the Gallbladder. This gallbladder hold bile produced in the liver until its needed for digestive purposes of food held in the duodenum.

The Pancreas is an organ in the upper abdomen behind the stomach. It secretes fluid rich in carbohydrates and inactive enzymes to the duodenum. These enzymes break down proteins, and fats. Also the pancreas makes insulin, secreting it directly into the bloodstream, the main hormone that metabolizes sugar.

As soon as the waste has passed through the colon it goes to the Rectum. It is the rectums job to receive waste that is now stool to let a person know that the stool will be evacuated and gold it until it will evacuate. This is the very last stop for the stool in the digestive tract, when you have to go to the restroom the stool is pushed to a sphincter getting to the Anus to be flushed away.