New therapies for functional bowel diseases.

During recent years, a greater understanding of the pathophysiology of functional bowel disease, and a surge of interest in this challenge among pharmacologists, basic scientists, and clinical investigators, have led to novel insights and promising therapies. The evidence to support current therapies in nonculcer dyspepsia and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is reviewed, and some of the novel therapeutic approaches on the threshold of clinical application are described.