Achalasia Center - El Monte, CA
El Monte Gastroenterologist Doctors for AchalasiaType of Physician: Gastroenterologist What is a Gastroenterologist? A subspecialty certification by the Board of Internal Medicine; practitioners focus on the stomach, intestines, colon, liver, and gallbladder (digestive organs). The gastroenterologist treats conditions such as abdominal pain, ulcers, diarrhea, cancer, and jaundice and they consult with surgeons when abdominal operations are indicated. Specialty: Gastroenterology Common Name: GI Doctor Gastroenterologist Doctors in El Monte * Tu Tran MD  Hanson T Lee Inc  Jay Noble MD  Chester D Zahn MD  Rangarao Panguluri MD  Valley Gastroenterology Consultants  Valley Gastroenterology Consultants  Robert J Mehler MD  Mark Li MD  Suresht Paul Sharma MD  Suresht Paul Sharma MD  Suresht Paul Sharma MD  Mumtaz Akram MD  Abdul Alaama MD  City of Hope National Medical Center Gastroenterology  Gastroenterology Associates  City of Hope National Medical Center Gastroenterology  Gastroenterology Associates  Gastroenterology Associates  Lisandro Quinones MD  Dennis Chan MD  Kwok-Leung Chung MD  Firmin Ho MD  Chun Yen Hsu MD  Chia-Chi G Lai MD  Shih Lin Lue MD  Barry Morguelan MD  Thomas S Lam MD  Edward Laurance MD  Richard L Parks MD & Barton Ueki MD  Robert A Mecum MD  Kenny Su MD  Shang Cheng Wu MD  Ching-Hsiu Chen MD  Ching-Hsiu Chen MD  Neal M Shindel MD  Magan Medical Clinic  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Gastroenterology Associates  Gastroenterology Associates  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Gastroenterology Associates  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Gastroenterology Associates  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants Medical Group  Alliance Digestive Disease Consultants  Conrad A Cox MD  Internal Medicine Specialists Medical Groups  Shahnawaz Jaffer MD  Gastro Digestive Medical Group  Frischer Medical Group  Steven J Weiss MD  George Ferenczi MD  Digestive Disease Center  Gastroenterology Consultants  USC Internal Medicine  Ethelred Carter MD  White Memorial Medical Group  Internal Medicine Specialists Medical Groups  Manmohan Kumar MD  St Jude Heritage Medical Group Bastanchury  The Internal Medical Group  St Jude Heritage Medical Sunnycrest  St Jude Heritage Medical Sunnycrest  St Jude Heritage Medical Sunnycrest  St Jude Heritage Medical Sunnycrest  David Shih MD  Jun-Ichi Ohara MD  Matsumoto Internal Medicine  Glendale Gastroenterology Medical Group  Glendale Gastroenterology Medical Group  Multi Health Care Medical Group  Ioana A Bina MD Inc  Gastro-Digestive Medical Group  Gastro-Digestive Medical Group  Behrooz Ahmadi MD  Norman Kuo MD  Artoon Arakel MD  Elming Djans MD  Michael Klein MD  W David Mello MD  Vincente Villa Jr. MD  William Loebman MD  William P Stuppy MD  Tavitian Gastroenterology Medical Group  Tavitian Gastroenterology Medical Group  Tavitian Gastroenterology Medical Group  Ravindra Alapati MD  Ashok Amin MD  Ambika Bali MD  Drs Sial & Cohen  West Gastroenterology Associates  Syam P Gaddam MD  Drs Sial & Cohen  West Gastroenterology Associates El Monte, CaliforniaUpcoming Local Events2012-05-20
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AchalasiaWhat is achalasia?Achalasia is a rare disease of the muscle of the esophagus (swallowing tube). The term achalasia means "failure to relax" and refers to the inability of the lower esophageal sphincter (a ring of muscle situated between the lower esophagus and the stomach) to open and let food pass into the stomach. As a result, patients with achalasia have difficulty in swallowing food.
How does the normal esophagus function?The esophagus has three functional parts. The uppermost part is the upper esophageal sphincter, a specialized ring of muscle that forms the upper end of the tubular esophagus and separates the esophagus from the throat. The upper sphincter remains closed most of the time to prevent food in the main part of the esophagus from backing up into the throat. The main part of the esophagus is referred to as the body of the esophagus, a long, muscular tube approximately 20 cm (8 in) in length. The third functional part of the esophagus is the lower esophageal sphincter, a ring of specialized esophageal muscle at the junction of the esophagus with the stomach. Like the upper sphincter, the lower sphincter remains closed most of the time to prevent food and acid from backing up into the body of the esophagus from the stomach. The upper sphincter relaxes with swallowing to allow food and saliva to pass from the throat into the esophageal body. The muscle in the upper esophagus just below the upper sphincter then contracts, squeezing food and saliva further down into the esophageal body. The ring-like contraction of the muscle progresses down the body of the esophagus, propelling the food and saliva towards the stomach. (The progression of the muscular contraction through the esophageal body is referred to as a peristaltic wave.). By the time the peristaltic wave reaches the lower sphincter, the sphincter has opened, and the food passes into the stoma... Recommended Reading Related to AchalasiaWhat is dysphagia?Dysphagia is the medical term for the symptom of difficulty swallowing, derived from the Latin and Greek words meaning difficulty eating. Mechanism of swallowing Swallowing is a complex action.
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Nearby El Monte Hospitals *Greater El Monte Community Hospital BHC Alhambra Hospital Kaiser Permanente Medical Center Baldwin Park Vista Specialty Hospital of San Gabriel Valley City of Angels Medical Center Ingleside Campus Methodist Hospital San Gabriel Valley Medical Center Citrus Valley Medical Center Queen of the Valley Campus Doctor's Hospital West Covina City of Hope National Medical Center Garfield Medical Center Beverly Hospital Aurora Las Encinas Hospital Monterey Park Hospital Kindred Hospital San Gabriel Valley Alhambra Hospital Medical Center Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital Citrus Valley Medical Center Inter Community Campus Huntington Hospital Whittier Hospital Medical Center East Los Angeles Doctors Hospital Aurora Charter Oak Hospital Los Angeles Community Hospital USC University Hospital Foothill Presbyterian Hospital USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center East Valley Hospital Medical Center LAC + USC Medical Center LAC + USC Medical Center Women's & Children's Hospital Metropolitan State Hospital Kindred Hospital La Mirada Promise Hospital of East Los Angeles White Memorial Medical Center Downey Regional Medical Center Norwalk Community Hospital San Dimas Community Hospital Coast Plaza Doctors Hospital Pacific Alliance Medical Center Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center Kaiser Mental Health Center Kindred Hospital Brea Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center Barlow Respiratory Hospital Community Hospital of Huntington Park Glendale Adventist Medical Center Gateways Hospital & Mental Health Center College Hospital Cerritos Good Samaritan Hospital California Hospital Medical Center Glendale Memorial Hospital & Health Center St Jude Medical Center St Francis Medical Center St Vincent Medical Center Verdugo Hills Hospital Orthopaedic Medical Center Temple Community Hospital Shriners Hospitals for Children Los Angeles Bellflower Medical Center Promise Hospital of East Los Angeles Suburban Medical Center Campus Childrens Hospital Los Angeles Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center La Palma Intercommunity Hospital Martin Luther King Jr MAC Service Center Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center Lakewood Regional Medical Center Los Angeles Metropolitan Medical Center Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation Anaheim Regional Medical Center Tri-City Regional Medical Center Placentia-Linda Hospital Hollywood Community Hospital West Anaheim Medical Center Anaheim General Hospital VA Greater Los Angeles HealthCare System Featured Articles*Provider Directory Terms of Use: The WebMD 'Provider Directory' is provided by WebMD for use by the general public as a quick reference of information about Providers. The Provider Directory is not intended as a tool for verifying the credentials, qualifications, or abilities of any Provider contained therein. Inclusion in the Provider Directory does not imply recommendation or endorsement nor does omission in the Provider Directory imply WebMD disapproval. |
Suggested Reading on Achalasia by Our Doctors
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Dysphagia
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