Abstract
Summary
The role of the extrinsic nerves in the local intestinal response to filling and distention has been studied by subjecting innervated and denervated intestinal segments of unanesthetized dogs to identical distending forces. Distention acts as a stimulus to the smooth muscle of the denervated intestine so that an active pressure increase may be induced by the stretch and passive pressure resulting from a standard amount of filling. The stimulatory effect of filling is not equally evident in the innervated intestine. This result may be interpreted as indicating that the degree of motility observed at the site of a distention in the innervated intestine depends, in part, upon a balance between direct stimulatory effects and reflex inhibitory effects.
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