Cyclic motility of the sphincter of Oddi

The sphincter of Oddi has a cyclic motility that is closely associated with the duodenal migrating motor complex during fasting. This close association affects the bile flow mechanism and may play several roles in keeping the intestine clean and maintaining the migrating motor complex. The cyclic motility of the sphincter of Oddi changes after surgery and abnormal motility causes biliary dyskinesia. In this article, the gastrointestinal migrating motor complex and cyclic motility of the sphincter of Oddi are reviewed for better understanding of biliary and gastrointestinal physiology and the relationship between the two phenomena.