Achalasia Center - Santa Barbara, CA
Santa Barbara 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 Santa Barbara * GI Consultants  GI Consultants  Sansum Clinic  Sansum Clinic  Sansum Clinic  Sansum Clinic  Digestive Disease Consultants  Sansum Clinic  Digestive Disease Consultants  Kaiser Permanente Buenaventura Medical Group  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Island View Gastroenterology Associates  Constante Abaya MD  Cecilio M Cabansag MD  Ventura County Gastroenterology Medical Group Inc  Ventura County Gastroenterology Medical Group Inc  Ventura County Gastroenterology Medical Group Inc  Ventura County Gastroenterology Medical Group Inc  Ventura County Gastroenterology Medical Group Inc  Sharam Daneshgar MD  Advanced Gastroenterology Inc  Bonaventure Eng MD  Steven A Kind MD  Gregory Johnson MD  Paul D Sanders MD  Benipal & Feldman MDs  Bruce F Mize MD Inc  Bruce F Mize MD Inc  Stanford Liver Clinic  Atul B Vachhani MD  Atul B Vachhani MD  Hector Cabellero MD  Moe Amadpour MD  Valley Gastro Group  Valley Gastro Group  Valley Gastro Group  Valley Gastro Group  Mysore R Nagaraja MD  R Chitayat MD & Calin Arimie MD  R Chitayat MD & Calin Arimie MD  Paul O Gulsrud MD  Rajeev R Manu MD  Nandakumar Ravi MD  Ishaan Kalha MD  Digestive Health Consultants  Digestive Health Consultants  Digestive Health Consultants  Digestive Health Consultants  Digestive Health Consultants  Gastroenterology Medical Group  Gastroenterology Medical Group  Gastroenterology Medical Group  Gastroenterology Medical Group  Facey Medical Group Valencia II  Valencia Gastroenterology Inc  Digestive Disease Center  Digestive Disease Center  Valencia Gastroenterology Inc  Digestive Disease Center  Santa Clarita Gastroenterology  Santa Clarita Gastroenterology  Hua Lin MD  Maria S Umali MD  San Joaquin Community Hospital  Drs Fagen Hepps & Madievsky  Drs Fagen Hepps & Madievsky  Drs Fagen Hepps & Madievsky  Gustavo A Machicado MD  Richard K Gordon MD  Piyush Jogani MD  Gustavo A Machicado MD  Mark F Tsai MD  Richard D Garrett MD  Amerian Getzug Klasky & Kam  Amerian Getzug Klasky & Kam  Gourdji & Jacobs MDs  Gourdji & Jacobs MDs  Amerian Getzug Klasky & Kam  Amerian Getzug Klasky & Kam  Marcos B Fleiderman MD  Advanced Gastroenterology  Anil Mehta MD  Carl I Blau MD  Federal Medical Clinic  Doctor House Call  Efrat Z Lobel MD APC Female Gastroenterologist  Star Weight Control  Facey Medical Foundation Mission Hills  Medical Group Of Encino  HeathCare Partners Medical Group  Drs Buch & Shiffman  Nagaraj M Chetty MD  Gnana Desigan MD  Drs Buch & Shiffman  Akasha Center for Integrative Medicine  UCLA Santa Monica Specialists Santa Barbara, CaliforniaUpcoming Local Events2012-06-02
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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.
Other Related Achalasia ArticlesEmergency Contact for Santa Barbara
Nearby Santa Barbara Hospitals *Cottage Rehabilitation Institute Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital Ojai Valley Community Hospital Aurora Vista Del Mar Hospital Community Memorial Hospital Ventura County Medical Center Santa Ynez Valley Cottage Hospital St John's Regional Medical Center 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. |
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