What is a motility disorder?
Motility disorders are conditions associated with the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, colon and anus/rectum. In a healthy child, wave-like contractions called peristalsis move food through the intestinal tract.
These contractions also help the body absorb nutrients. Peristaltic contractions happen when the muscles and nerves of the digestive tract work together.
Problems with the function of the muscles or nerves of your digestive tract can cause a variety of motility issues for a child, including:
- Abdominal pain or distension (bloating)
- Aspirating (inhaling liquid into the lungs)
- Chest pain
- Choking
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Difficulty swallowing
- Gagging
- Incontinence or soiling
- Regurgitation (bringing undigested food up from the stomach to the mouth)
- Vomiting
- Weight loss
Talk to your child's doctor to help decide if this clinic is right for your child's need. Your doctor will make a referral.
Conditions we treat
- Achalasia
- Anorectal malformations
- Chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction
- Dysphagia
- Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Type III
- Fecal incontinence
- Functional abdominal pain
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Gastroparesis
- Hirschsprung’s disease
- Imperforate anus
- Intractable constipation
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Motility disorders
- Recurrent vomiting
- Rumination
- Spina bifida