Gut
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Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) are characterised by visceral pain or discomfort with an unknown cause. There is increasing evidence for abnormal processing of sensory input in FGIDs. Modulation of sensory input occurs at all levels of the nervous system, with a dynamic balance between facilitation and inhibition and close integration with the body's wider homoeostatic control. ⋯ Because the modulatory balance of inhibition and facilitation appears to be distributed within the same functional network, future imaging studies of modulation mechanisms should include conditions allowing quantification of inhibitory and facilitatory components. An altered modulatory balance may well be a unifying pathophysiological mechanism in FGID as it can be driven by both top-down (ie, CNS pathology) and bottom-up (ie, peripheral immune activation) influences, but further validation in diverse FGID groups over time is required. Therapeutic manipulation of the modulatory system is possible by both pharmacological and non-pharmacological means.