1.   Interdigestive motor complexes are absent, postprandial antral motor activity is decreased, gastric emptying of radioopaque is delayed, and gall gladder contraction is reduced.

2.   The interdigestive cycle of motor activity, or migrating motor complex, starts from the lower oesophagus and migrates but ends in the terminal ileum.

3.   Because there is little motor activity in the healthy colon during sleep, sedation was minimised and we waited until the patient was awake before starting the testing.

4.   Non-deglutitive motor activity of the oesophagus is usually considered to be a sign of disordered motility.

5.   In fact, none of the inappropriate relaxations of the lower oesophageal sphincter was accompanied by this type of non-deglutitive motor activity.

6.   The lack of an appropriate animal model has hampered progress on the investigation of colonic motor activity.

7.   The calcium channel blocker nicardipine decreases rectal postprandial motor activity in normal subjects.

8.   It also inhibits motor activity induced by rectal distention and increases sensory thresholds for defaecation in patients with the irritable bowel syndrome.