Gastric disorders: modifications of gastric content, antacids and drugs influencing gastric secretions and motility

Gastric disorders occur spontaneously and as a side effect of anaesthesia or surgery. In anaesthesia, the use of opioids is the most common causative factor. The most commonly used drug treatments are antiemetics, drugs reducing gastric acidity and prokinetic agents. Drugs reducing gastric acidity range from simple antacids to receptor antagonists (e.g. muscarinic, histamine H2, cholecystokinin B), which reduce gastric secretion. Functional dyspepsia, or pain or discomfort in the upper abdomen, has multifactorial causes and patients can be divided into subgroups according to their response to drugs. Most gastrointestinal infections are viral, but Helicobacter pylori has been associated with gastric ulcers; antibiotics can be used in this case.