Imperforate
A term applied to an organ lacking a normal opening. For example, a baby may be born with an imperforate anus with no outer opening, or the oesophagus may be closed so that it is not connected with the stomach. Such defects can usually be corrected by surgery.
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The Intestines
The intestines are the long tube by which food leaves the stomach and is eventually excreted from the body. The tube is made up of sheaths of muscle, coated on the inside with mucous membrane. The small intestine leads directly from the stomach. It is about 22 feet long, and up to 1½ inches wide. It continues the process, begun in the stomach, of absorbing nutrients from the food.
The hiatus is an opening in the diaphragm (a muscle separating the abdomen and chest) that the esophagus passes through to reach the stomach. If the hiatus weakens and stretches, part of the stomach and/or the oesophagus can squeeze into the chest cavity, producing a hiatal hernia.
Essentially, there are three types of hiatal her-nias. In a sliding hernia, the lower oesophagus and stomach move upward, bringing the top part of the stomach into the chest cavity.
The anus is the opening at the end of the digestive tract where stool leaves the body; the rectum is the section of the digestive tract above the anus where stool is held before it passes out of the body through the anus.
An anal fissure is a tear or ulcer in the lining of the anus.
An injury from a hard or large stool movement may cause anal fissures. Fissures cause the anal sphincter (muscle) to go into spasm, which prevents healing.
The majority of people who have hiatal hernias don't even realize it. Those who do know typically find out when visiting a doctor because of chronic heartburn. Symptoms may include the following:
- heartburn; regurgitation.
- difficulty swallowing.
- chest pain radiating from below the breastbone (the sternum).
- a bloated feeling after eating.
- shortness of breath.
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What is a Colposcopy? What are The Benefits of Colposcopy?
Colposcopy is a procedure that uses a special microscope (called a colposcope) to look into the vagina and to look very closely at the cervix (the opening to the uterus, or womb).
The colposcope magnifies, or enlarges, the image of the outer portion of the cervix. It is somewhat like looking through a pair of binoculars.
This allows the health care provider to see the outer portion of the cervix better. Sometimes a smal sample of tissue (called a biopsy) is taken for further study.
An obstruction may occur anywhere along the intestine. The part of the intestine above the obstruction continues to function. As it fills with food, fluid, digestive secretions, and gas, it swells like a soft hose.
In newborns and infants, intestinal obstruction is commonly caused by a birth defect, a hard mass of intestinal contents (meconium), or a twisting of the intestine on itself (volvulus).
Under normal circumstances, the hiatus is a small opening in the muscular diaphragm at the juncture where the esophagus meets the stomach. A hiatal hernia develops when the opening widens and allows the upper part of the stomach to protrude upward through the hiatus. Some hiatal hernias are present at birth.
Most of them, however, develop during life as the opening of the hiatus becomes stretched, often as a result of pregnancy or excessive weight gain, both of which place upward pressure on the stomach.
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