Digestive Digestive SystemSystem

Saimah AliSaimah Ali • Abby Daitol • Gulshan Nandha

What is the digestive system?The human digestive system is a complex

series of organs and glands that processes food to nourish and provide energy.

In order to use the food we eat, our body has to break the food down into smaller molecules that it can process.

It also has to excrete waste.

Also known as the digestive tract

Pathway by which food enters the body and solid wastes are expelled

Mouth Pharynx Esophagus Stomach Small intestine Large intestine Anus

Mouth

The first part of the digestive tract where food enters the body

Function: Chewing breaks the food into pieces that are more easily digested, while saliva mixes with food to begin the process of breaking it down into a form your body can absorb and use.

Pharynx

Cone shaped passageway leading from the oral and nasal cavity in the head to the esophagus and larynx

Also known as the throat Function: receives the food from the

mouth The act of swallowing takes place in the

pharynx

• The Epiglottis is the flap of elastic cartilage that protects food from entering the larynx when swallowing.

The esophagus is a muscular tube extending from the pharynx and behind the trachea (windpipe) to the stomach.

Function: receives the food from the mouth when you swallow and delivers it to the stomach

The stomach is a hollow organ, or "container," that holds food

Function: The stomach secretes acid and powerful enzymes that continue the process of breaking the food down and changing it to a consistency of liquid.

From there, food moves to the small intestine.

When full, the average adult stomach can hold approximately four liters of food.

Long, thin winding tube that food goes through after it leaves the stomach

The small intestine is responsible for absorbing most of the nutrients found within your food

Digestion of fats, proteins and carbohydrates contained in the foods you consume, is completed within the small intestine.

Large Intestine

(colon)

Long muscular tube that connects the small intestine to the rectum

Function: reabsorbs water and maintains the fluid balance of the body

absorbs certain vitaminsprocesses undigested

materialstores waste before it is

eliminated

CONTINUED

Rectum: the lower part of the large intestine

It is the rectum's job to receive stool (feces) from the colon, to let the person know that there is stool to be evacuated, and to hold the stool until evacuation happens

Abdominal cavity • The stomach, liver,

intestines and rectum are in the abdominal cavity.

• The abdominal cavity is shown in yellow- the top is the thoracic the middle is the abdominal and the end is the abdominopelvic.

The anus is the opening through which stools/feces (the waste products of digestion) pass out of the rectum and are eliminated from the body

Gallbladder- it stores and releases bile (a digestive chemical which is produced in the liver) into the small intestine

Liver- filters toxins from blood and makes bile and some blood proteins

Pancreas- enzymes from the pancreas help in the digestion of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in the small intestine

Diseases of the Digestive System

Cirrhosis of the LiverCirrhosis is a condition in which the liver slowly

deteriorates and malfunctions due to chronic injury. Scar tissue replaces healthy liver tissue, partially blocking the flow of blood through the liver. Scarring also impairs the liver’s ability to:

• control infections • remove bacteria and toxins from the blood • process nutrients, hormones, and drugs • make proteins that regulate blood clotting • produce bile to help absorb fats—including

cholesterol—and fat-soluble vitaminsA healthy liver is able to regenerate most of its

own cells when they become damaged. With end-stage cirrhosis, the liver can no longer effectively replace damaged cells. A healthy liver is necessary for survival.

In a liver biopsy, a needle is used to take a small piece of liver tissue. That sample is then examined under a microscope. ->

How is cirrhosis diagnosed?Your symptoms, a physical examination, and certain tests can help your doctor diagnose cirrhosis. Some tests are:

•Blood tests

•X-RaY

•Liver Biopsy

What causes cirrhosis?Some causes are:• Cirrhosis has many causes, including• alcohol abuse (alcoholic liver disease) • autoimmune hepatitis, which is

destruction of liver cells by the body’s immune system

• nonalcoholic fatty liver disease or nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which is fat deposits and inflammation in the liver

• some drugs, toxins, and infections • blocked bile ducts, the tubes that

carry bile from the liver

How can you treat liver cirrhosis?• Once you have scar

tissue in your liver, nothing will make it go away. But, treatment will prevent it from getting worse.

If too much scar tissue forms, your liver could fail. At this point you would need to consider a liver transplant to return you to good health.

Complications of Liver Cirrhosis • Bruising and bleeding.

When the liver slows or stops producing the proteins needed for blood clotting, a person will bruise or bleed easily.

• Jaundice: yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes and darkening of the urine.

• Liver cancer. Hepatocellular carcinoma is a type of liver cancer that can occur in people with cirrhosis. Hepatocellular carcinoma has a high mortality rate, but several treatment options are available.

What is your appendix and where is it?

• The appendix is a fingerlike pouch attached to the large intestine and located in the lower right area of the abdomen.

• Scientists are not sure what the appendix does, if anything, but removing it does not appear to affect a person’s health.

Appendicitis• Appendicitis is a painful

swelling and infection of the appendix.

Who gets appendicitis? • Anyone can get it, but

it is more common in people between the ages 10 – 30 years old.

Some symptoms may include:

• loss of appetite • nausea • vomiting • constipation or diarrhea

The main symptom is abdominal pain. The abdominal pain usually:

• occurs suddenly, often causing a person to wake up at night • occurs before other symptoms • begins near the belly button and then moves lower and to

the right • is new and unlike any pain felt before

Crohn’s disease causes inflammation (irritation and swelling) of parts of the digestive tract. The inflammation, mostly caused by sores called ulcers, can cause pain and diarrhea.

The digestive tract is the pathway food travels through in the body. This pathway is also called the gastrointestinal, or GI, tract. It goes from the mouth to the anus.

Swelling in the digestive tract makes the passage narrow.

How is Crohn’s disease diagnosed?• A detailed personal history, a

physical exam, and tests are needed to diagnose Crohn’s disease. During your visit the doctor will ask about your symptoms and health.

• Blood tests can uncover anemia. Anemia can mean you have bleeding in your intestines. Blood tests can also show a high white blood cell count, a sign of inflammation in the body.

• X rays may be needed. The doctor may also do an upper GI series and small bowel follow-through to look at your small intestine.

Treatment may include drugs minerals and vitamins surgery nutritional support

Goals of the treatment:

•help the inflammation •correct nutritional problems •relieve symptoms such as abdominal pain, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding

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