GI Motility Disorders

Gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders can significantly affect your life. When your digestive tract isn’t working correctly, you may experience physical symptoms, emotional distress and anxiety. Henry Ford Health offers comprehensive care for all types of GI motility disorders, including gastroparesis, treatment-resistant constipation, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and swallowing disorders.

Motility disorder care: Why choose Henry Ford?

At our advanced Center for Motility Disorders, you’ll find:

• Specialty expertise: Our fellowship-trained gastroenterologists have extensive experience diagnosing and treating disorders that affect how your gastrointestinal tract and its nerves function. They specialize in complex motility disorders such as gastroparesis and achalasia.
• Team approach: All the specialty care you need is conveniently available under one roof. Gastroenterologists work alongside therapeutic endoscopists, registered dietitians, surgeons, a GI health psychologist and other providers at Henry Ford to ensure you receive complete care.
• Personalized care: We find out how motility disorder symptoms affect your quality of life. An experienced team builds your treatment plan around your needs and goals. Whether you want to relieve chronic bloating, reduce the risk of bowel accidents or feel confident about eating in restaurants again, we can help.
• Minimally invasive treatments: We’re a leader in Michigan for peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM), an innovative technique for treating swallowing disorders and gastroparesis using a minimally invasive approach. Our surgeons also offer the LINX procedure for gastroesophageal reflux disease. A surgeon places a small band of magnetic beads around your esophagus to prevent acid reflux.

What are gut motility disorders?

Motility disorders affect the nerve and muscle function of your gut, causing problems with how food moves through your digestive tract. Food may be digested too quickly or too slowly. Motility disorders can affect the upper part of your GI tract, such as your esophagus, down to your pelvic floor.

At Henry Ford, we treat all types of motility disorders including:

• Small bowel dysmotility
• Dysphagia, achalasia and other swallowing disorders
• Fecal incontinence
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• Gastroparesis
• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Pelvic floor dysfunction
• Treatment-resistant constipation and diarrhea
• Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO)

When should I see a motility specialist?

It’s time to see a motility specialist if you experience:

• Bloating, belching or gas
• Bowel accidents
• Chronic constipation
• Chronic heartburn
• Decreased appetite
• Difficulty swallowing
• Nausea and vomiting
• Noncardiac chest pain or abdominal pain
• Unintentional weight loss

Motility disorder diagnosis and treatment at Henry Ford

A motility disorder doesn’t have to take over your life. With the right tests and a personalized treatment plan, you can get back to feeling like yourself again. Learn more about how we diagnose and treat motility disorders at Henry Ford.