Some people often have hiccups, heartburn, acid reflux, bloating, abdominal pain, unformed stools, farting, diarrhea, constipation or alternating diarrhea and constipation, and go to the hospital for laboratory tests, abdominal ultrasound, gastroscopy and other examinations, all of which reveal nothing wrong, but in fact these symptoms may be the fault of gastrointestinal dysfunction. This disease is very common, accounting for about 40% to 60% of patients in gastroenterology outpatient clinics. So what exactly is gastrointestinal dysfunction? The following will answer the more concerned questions one by one, hoping to help you understand the problem of gastrointestinal dysfunction in a more comprehensive manner.
A. What is gastrointestinal dysfunction?
Gastrointestinal dysfunction is actually the general name of a group of gastrointestinal syndrome, the formal medical name is functional gastrointestinal disease. Generally speaking, gastrointestinal dysfunction is a series of gastrointestinal symptoms caused by abnormal brain-gut axis interaction, mental and psychological factors that lead to uncoordinated movement of the gastrointestinal tract, hypersensitivity, intolerance to certain foods, or abnormal secretion of the digestive tract.
Second, what are the characteristics of gastrointestinal dysfunction
1.High incidence. About 1/3 of the general population has experienced this.
2, the course of the disease is relatively long. It usually lasts for several months or even years.
3, the onset of the disease is relatively slow. There are intermittent episodes, often with periods of remission, and the symptoms are sometimes mild and sometimes severe, sometimes good and sometimes bad.
4.Diversity of symptoms. Even if it is the same disease, different people can have different performance.
5.It is easy to misdiagnose. Since there are no specific symptoms and specific examination methods for gastrointestinal disorders, it is especially easy to misdiagnose.
6.The treatment effect is not ideal. Since there are many factors affecting the development of the disease, there is a lack of drugs or methods to cure it.
7. Repeated medical consultations. Repeated visits to the doctor due to unsatisfactory treatment results have a greater impact on the quality of life. It also tends to cause confusion and fear of disease in patients.
Third, what are the manifestations of gastrointestinal dysfunction?
Since gastrointestinal dysfunction is a gastrointestinal syndrome, the symptoms are diverse and involve the whole digestive tract, including upper gastrointestinal symptoms such as acid reflux, heartburn, belching, halitosis, nausea, burning sensation under the glabella, pain behind the sternum, fullness after eating, epigastric pain, etc., and intestinal symptoms such as vague abdominal pain, bloating, intestinal tinnitus, unformed stools, increased exhaustion, poor defecation, mucus, diarrhea, constipation, or alternating diarrhea and constipation, or alternating diarrhea and constipation.
Most patients also have anxiety, insomnia, forgetfulness, hypersensitivity, easy fatigue, poor concentration and other mental symptoms.
What are the types of gastrointestinal disorders?
According to the Roman criteria of functional gastrointestinal disease, gastrointestinal dysfunction can be divided into functional esophageal disease, functional gastroduodenal disease, functional intestinal disease and so on. Gastrointestinal dysfunction may be one disease or multiple diseases coexisting, that is, overlapping gastrointestinal dysfunction. Common types of disorders are as follows.
Functional heartburn: mainly presenting with heartburn, burning retrosternal discomfort or pain.
functional chest pain: mainly presenting with non-burning retrosternal pain or discomfort
functional dysphagia: mainly presenting with abnormal food adherence, retention or sensation through the esophagus
pharyngeal heterosensitivity, hysterical globus: mainly presenting with non-painful lumpy sensation or foreign body sensation in the throat
functional dyspepsia: mainly manifesting postprandial fullness and discomfort; early satiety; epigastric pain; burning sensation in the epigastrium.
irritable bowel syndrome: mainly presenting with vague pain in the lower abdomen, unformed stools, increased exhaustion, poor defecation, mucus, or with constipation and diarrhea.
Functional constipation: mainly manifesting constipation, no abdominal pain, straining to defecate, feeling of inability to defecate, feeling of obstruction, requiring assistance in defecation by manipulation.
Functional diarrhea: the main manifestation of diarrhea loose (paste) or watery stool, no abdominal pain.
V. What is the etiology of gastrointestinal disorders?
The occurrence of gastrointestinal dysfunction is mainly related to gastrointestinal motility disorders, visceral hypersensitivity, intestinal flora disorders, and psychosomatic factors. Such as heavy workload, increased economic burden, fierce competition at work, too fast pace of life, layoff and unemployment, death of relatives, stimulation of accidents, interpersonal tension and family disputes, etc. Genetic factors, environmental factors are also important factors, and food factors are also causative factors of this disease. Recent studies have concluded that the onset of gastrointestinal dysfunction is mainly related to the disorder of gut-brain axis interaction.
What are the factors that can easily trigger gastrointestinal disorders?
1, dietary factors: food is the most common cause of gastrointestinal dysfunction. Some spicy and stimulating foods such as sour fruits, spices, alcohol, chili and strong coffee, intolerant foods such as milk, soy products, indigestible foods and fermentable foods such as high FODMAP diet may induce or aggravate gastrointestinal dysfunction.
2, mental and psychological factors: major events in the family, unit and society, promotion, promotion, allocation of housing, employment is blocked. Interpersonal tension, economic loss such as debt, business loss, lost love, marriage, etc. Family members, colleagues and friends hospitalized with tumors, fear of Helicobacter pylori infection, atrophic gastritis, intestinal epithelial hyperplasia, lobular hyperplasia of the breast, thyroid nodules will become cancerous, etc. Long-term work pressure, fatigue, overtime, etc., excessive fatigue, heavy tasks, overload dynamic turn, such as failure to rationally face these negative life events, will be affected by emotions followed by gastrointestinal function, gastrointestinal dysfunction.
3, environmental factors: cold easily induced and aggravated gastrointestinal cramps, especially the thin crowd is easy to cold, some people are particularly sensitive to cold, a little air conditioning in summer, winter stay in the north-facing room or sit on a cold bench will appear abdominal pain, abdominal chirping and diarrhea.
Seven, how to determine the gastrointestinal disorders?
There is actually an international standard for diagnosing gastrointestinal dysfunction, which is usually diagnosed using a standard called Rome III or IV. In China, most experts believe that the diagnosis is based on the Rome standard and needs to be combined with relevant auxiliary tests to avoid missing organic diseases. Currently, clinicians usually diagnose gastrointestinal disorders based on the following seven clinical features
1.Main symptoms: repeated one or more of the above-mentioned gastrointestinal dysfunction symptoms without the above-mentioned gastrointestinal organic disease symptoms.
2, concomitant symptoms: accompanied by frequent manifestations of panic, shortness of breath, headache, back pain, tension, sensitivity, anxiety, depression, insomnia, etc.
3, duration of disease: most of the disease is longer than 3-6 months, or even years and decades.
4, medical history: no chronic systemic diseases, no long-term drug history, no history of abdominal surgery.
5, physical examination: no anemia, wasting, jaundice, enlarged lymph nodes in the neck, enlarged liver and spleen, abdominal masses, ascites and other signs.
6. examination: routine examinations such as gastroscopy, colonoscopy, abdominal ultrasound, CT and MR, blood, or repeated examinations without abnormal findings.
7, treatment: most of the symptoms do not improve easily with various symptomatic drugs or recur after improvement and frequent visits.
Eight, how to treat gastrointestinal dysfunction?
First of all, we should maintain a good psychological state. Eliminate unnecessary tension, worry, fear and other adverse psychological state, is not to focus on their own gastrointestinal discomfort above, the better the state of mind, their own visceral sensitivity will be lower, the symptoms will improve.
The second thing is to develop a healthy lifestyle. Establish a regular rhythm of life, regular meals, regular rest, regular wake up, regular bowel movements, in order to develop their own healthy “biological clock”. Actively participate in physical exercise and recreational activities to distract your attention. Avoid sitting and standing for a long time, and do more aerobic exercise.
Thirdly, we should pay attention to dietary regimen. The diet should be light, eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, eat more coarse grains, drink more water, drink more yogurt. Avoid rough, greasy and irritating foods, and avoid foods that can induce symptoms in personal life experiences, such as those who are lactose intolerant, try to avoid foods such as milk, and those who are prone to diarrhea after eating foods such as shrimp and sea oysters, also avoid such foods.
Finally, symptomatic treatment with medication is possible. For gastrointestinal motility disorders and gastrointestinal visceral hypersensitivity, medications that regulate gastrointestinal motility and reduce gastrointestinal irritation factors can be used. For patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders with significant depression and anxiety disorders can be supplemented with anti-anxiety and depression medications. However, drugs, whether prescribed or over-the-counter, are recommended to be used under the guidance of a medical professional.
9. Can gastrointestinal disorders be cured?
Nowadays, it is generally believed that gastrointestinal dysfunction is a chronic and stable disease, but in the process of treatment, there can be repeated fluctuations in the severity of symptoms. As gastrointestinal dysfunction is affected by a variety of factors, it is now generally believed that as long as the severity of symptoms is controlled in a way that does not affect normal work and life, it is not necessary to achieve a state of complete absence of physical discomfort.
Although the symptoms of gastrointestinal dysfunction can recur, and the duration of the disease can reach several years to decades, but the general health condition is not affected, so it does not affect the life expectancy, and must correctly understand the disease, and to lift the mind concerns, proper handling and correct treatment of life, work and other environmental factors, and actively eliminate mental and psychological barriers, improve confidence in the treatment, adjust the lifestyle and diet. The majority of patients will be able to improve significantly and will not affect their normal life, so they must have confidence.