Pathologic Response of the Gastrointestinal Tract to Toxicants

This article covers the normal anatomy and histology of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), from the esophagus to the rectum, as well as pathologic responses to toxicants in the GIT. Because the GIT is a primary route of exposure to toxins and medications, the resulting lesions are important to understand and study. Many toxicopathologic lesions in the GIT, however, are nonspecific and follow a continuum, from necrosis and ulceration/inflammation to healing, fibrosis, or metaplasia/dysplasia. Nevertheless, these lesions are important in that they may lead either directly or indirectly to the death of the patient.