Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Bloat, also known as torsion and gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV) is a medical condition in which the stomach becomes overstretched by excessive gas content. It occurs most commonly in domesticated animals, especially dogs and cattle. The cause is either overfeeding or a digestive disorder. The condition exists in two varieties, depending on the direction of movement of the stomach. If the stomach twists around the axis of the digestive tract, the condition is known as torsion, and if the axis of movement is perpedicular to the digestive tract, the condition is known as volvulus. In either case, the oesophagus is closed off, thereby preventing the animal from relieving the condition by belching or vomiting. At the other end of the stomach, the spleen may be damaged if the twisting interrupts its blood supply. If not quickly treated, the condition can lead to blood poisoning, peritonitis and death by toxic shock. The term is also used figuratively to describe the uncontrolled and damaging growth of a system (as in "software bloat"). This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.