Treatment of bleeding gastroesophageal varices: a report of forty-four cases.
Bleeding gastroesophageal varices is associated with a high morbidity and mortality. Forty-four cases of bleeding gastroesophageal varices were treated at the Department of Surgery, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, General Hospital, Kuala Lumpur over four and a half years. Thirty-two of them had liver cirrhosis. Hepatitis B infection was noted in 13 and alcoholic abuse was present in 14 patients. Five patients had associated hepatoma. Thirty-four percent had gastric fundal varices and a third of these bled from them. A total of 179 endoscopic injection sclerotherapy sessions were performed averaging 4 per person. Rebleeding rate was 4% and mortality was high (50%) in these cases. It was concluded that injection sclerotherapy is a safe and effective means of controlling bleeding oesophageal varices. Operative surgery was employed in those who rebled after injection and would be considered in those in Child's A.
Tay
S K
SK
Department of Surgery, Universiti Kebangsaan, Kuala Lumpur.
Leong
Y P
YP
Meah
F A
FA
Abdullah
T
T
Zain
A R
AR
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D004932:Esophageal and Gastric Varices / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006471:Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015911:Sclerotherapy / Q000379:methods