Measurement of Colonic Motor Function

The mammalian large intestine is a highly versatile organ that maintains fluid and electrolyte balance, salvages the products of intracolonic fermentation and stores faeces until elimination is convenient. These functions all depend ultimately on the colon’s capacity to control the distal progression of contents. As chyme enters from the ileum, it is retained in the proximal colon, while colonic micro-organisms degrade indigestible food residues such as cellulose; water and electrolytes are absorbed actively at this time. The colonic contents are desiccated during further transit and solid faeces are formed, ready for defaecation. These processes are possible because colonic transit is much longer than is the time for movement through the rest of the gut.