A new approach for digestive disease diagnosis: Dynamics of gastrointestinal electrical activity

Various methods are used for analyzing the status of the human body. In digestive system, myoelectrical activity is recorded from the abdominal surface. Frequency and power of Gastrointestinal (GI) activity is usually assessed using power spectral analysis. However, spectral analysis of GI electrical activity is a nonspecific test, failing to distinguish diseases. Other dimensions of GI electrical waves may help identify diseases more precisely. Studying complex systems is one of the approaches that can be taken for research on body systems. The dynamic variability of a complex system is estimated by nonlinear methods. Previous studies have identified how functional dynamic variability of organs differ in normal and disease conditions. Variation of electroencephalogram, heart rate, and respiratory rate are known examples of system dynamic fluctuation. If we consider the digestive tract as a complex system, the dynamic variation of the waves in the GI system could be analyzed by nonlinear methods to possibly help clinicians assess various conditions of the GI system in healthy subjects and patients.