What are peristaltic movements? What is their role in human digestion?
Peristalsis is the process of synchronized contractions of the muscular wall of the digestive tube. Peristaltic movements may occur from the esophagus until and including the bowels. The peristaltic movements are involuntary and they have the function of moving and mixing food along the digestive tube. Peristaltic movement deficiency, for example, in case of injuries of the innervation of the muscular wall of the digestive tube caused by Chagas’ disease, can lead to the interruption of the food traffic inside the bowels and to severe clinical consequences like megacolon (abnormal enlargement of the colon) and megaesophagus (enlargement of the esophagus).
