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The Responsiveness of the Esophagus To Environmental Stimuli

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Psychophysiology of the Gastrointestinal Tract

Abstract

The contractile activity of the esophagus is one of the bodily functions which is affected by psychological events or events in the environment of the healthy human organism. We all are familiar with expressions such as “I can’t swallow that” or “There is a lump in my throat,” indicating altered esophageal function in states of emotional tension or of psychic upset. Moreover, these expressions do not simply reflect subjective feelings but correspond to real changes in the pattern of esophageal motility which has been reported in a number of publications. The mechanisms by which these changes are brought about are still unclear and not much progress has been made in determining their role in the development of esophageal motor disorders.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychophysiology Unit at the Psychiatric and at the First Surgical Clinic, University of Vienna, A-1090, Vienna, Austria

    Georg Stacher

Authors
  1. Georg Stacher
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Federal Republic of Germany

    Rupert Hölzl

  2. Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    William E. Whitehead

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© 1983 Plenum Press, New York

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Stacher, G. (1983). The Responsiveness of the Esophagus To Environmental Stimuli. In: Hölzl, R., Whitehead, W.E. (eds) Psychophysiology of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3530-6_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3530-6_2

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-3532-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-3530-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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