Chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction

Chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction (CIPO) is a syndrome defined by the p resence of chronic intestinal dilation and dysmotility in the absence of me chanical obstruction or gross inflammatory disease. Specific diseases may a ffect any level of the brain-gut axis. For most patients, the diagnosis rel ies upon a combination of historical, laboratory, manometric and histologic al features. Recent advances into the autoimmune nature of etiologies such as Chagas' disease and paraneoplastic dysmotility and into the genetic basi s of mitochondrial neurogastrointestinal encephalomyopathy, multiple endocr ine neoplasia IIB and Hirschsprung's disease have greatly refined our under standing and diagnosis of these disorders. At present, medical therapy of C IPO remains limited. Current and future developments in pharmacologic agent s targeting specific enteric neurotransmitters and motility patterns hold m uch promise for improving the care of the patients afflicted with this comp lex and often debilitating syndrome. Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel .