Segmentation - the process in which
a number of contractions occur simultaneously at uniform intervals
along the small intestine, which mixes the contents of the
lumen with secretions and aids in nutrient absorption.
Sepsis - a systemic inflammatory
response to infection that may result in organ failure and
death.
Secretin - a hormone produced
in the small intestine that activates the pancreas to secret
pancreatic juices.
Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS)
- a condition in which a massive resection of the bowel results
in an inability of the remaining intestine to absorb sufficient
nutrients.
Sigmoidoscopy - a diagnostic
test in which a lighted tube is passed through the rectum
into the sigmoid colon.
Small intestine - also called
the bowel, the longest portion of the digestive tract, which
connects the stomach to the colon; it is divided into three
sections: the duodenum, jejunum and ileum and is responsible
for most of the digestion and absorption of food.
Sphincter - a ring of muscle
that opens and closes (e.g., the anus).
Sphincteroplasty - also called
rectal sphincter repair, it is a surgical procedure used to
correct a defect in the anal sphincter muscles.
Stenosis - a narrowing (as
in a segment of intestine).
Steatorrhea - fat in the stool.
Stoma - a surgically created
opening from the bowel to the skin as the result of an ostomy.
Stomach - an muscular organ
between the esophagus and duodenum that contributes to digestion
primarily by grinding ingested food and mixing it with acid
and digestive enzymes, and by providing a reservoir that permits
digestion to take place gradually.
Stricture - a narrowed area
caused by inflammation or scar tissue.
Strictureplasty - a surgical
procedure to widen narrowed areas of intestine.
Sigmoid colon - the portion of the
colon between the descending colon, the rectosigmoid junction,
and the rectum.
This information
is provided as a general educational service
and is not intended to recommend any particular treatment plan
or to replace the advice of physicians. It is important that patients
seek and rely on the advice of a healthcare professional
about their individual medical conditions.
