During the last 30 years, Professor Holtmann has been very fortunate to be able to drive a paradigm shift for the pathophysiologic concepts of functional gastrointestinal disorders. While initially considered a ‘psychosomatic disorder’, his work identified genetic risk factors (e.g. the GNB3 polymorphism) and established a now widely accepted concept of minimal systemic inflammation as a driver for the manifestation of these conditions. Based upon these findings novel treatments can be developed that will allow to better treat and ultimately cure patients with these highly prevalent diseases.
