INFLAMMATION OF THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS. 257 



associated with colicky pains — should not he termed 

 " colic." 



INFLAMMATORY AFFECTIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE 

 ORGANS. 



In all these diseases the symptoms bear some resem- 

 blance, which also applies to causation, pathology, and 

 treatment. 



This is owing to similarity in structure of the intestine, 

 stomach, etc., and to the fact that the different parts of 

 one long tract are anatomically and functionally so related 

 that one can not be seriously affected without the other 

 sympathetically (reliexly) feeling the effects. To illustrate 

 this again, if the stomach is inflamed, nervous influences 

 proceeding from the disordered region inward to the 

 centers by the nerves supplying the region in question so 

 affect these centers (brain and spinal cord) that influences 

 radiate from the latter along the nerves to the part affect- 

 ed, and to other regions often widely removed, and act 

 through the blood-vessels and otherwise. (Fig. 16.) This 

 explains how it is that the heart, the appetite, the intes- 

 tines, etc., may be affected in an inflammation of the peri- 

 toneum, for example. 



The most important diseases of the alimentary tract 

 are gastritis, or inflammation of the stomach; enteritis, 

 or inflammation of the small intestines ; dysentery, or in- 

 flammation of the larger intestine ; and peritonitis, or 

 inflammation of the serous covering of the walls of the 

 abdomen, etc. 



Comjnon Pathology. — Increased secretion, etc. {ca- 

 tarrh), following a dry state of the mucous membrane, 



