Our objectives were to characterize colonic viscoelastic properties of the human descending colon by assessing pressure-volume (P-V) relationships during barostatic balloon distension. In 16 healthy subjects, a balloon was inflated to 44 mmHg and then deflated to 0 mmHg in 4-mmHg steps at 10, 30, and 60 ml/min, allowing volume fluctuations to stabilize at each pressure increment. Thereafter, th...
