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Published on: September 27, 2018
Electroceuticals in the Gastrointestinal Tract
Khalil B Ramadi1, Shriya S Srinivasan1, Giovanni Traverso1
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endoscopy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
Abstract:
The field of electroceuticals has attracted considerable attention over the past few decades as a novel therapeutic modality. The gastrointestinal (GI) tract (GIT) holds significant potential as a target for electroceuticals as the intersection of neural, endocrine, and immune systems. We review recent developments in electrical stimulation of various portions of the GIT (including esophagus, stomach, and small and large intestine) and nerves projecting to the GIT and supportive organs. This has been tested with varying degrees of success for several dysmotility, inflammatory, hormonal, and neurologic disorders. We outline a vision for the future of GI electroceuticals, building on advances in mechanistic understanding of GI physiology coupled with novel ingestible technologies. The next wave of electroceutical therapies will be minimally invasive and more targeted than current approaches, making them an indispensable tool in the clinical armamentarium.
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