Predictors of rebleeding and in-hospital mortality in patients with nonvariceal upper digestive bleeding

BACKGROUND Nonvariceal upper digestive bleeding (NVUDB) represents a severe emergency condition and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Despite a decrease in the incidence due to the widespread use of potent therapy with proton pump inhibitors as well as the implementation of modern endoscopic techniques, the mortality rate associated with NVUDB is still high. AIM To identify the clinical, biological, and endoscopic parameters associated with a poor outcome in patients with NVUDB to allow the stratification of risk, which will lead to the implementation of the most accurate management. METHODS We performed a retrospective study including patients who were admitted to the Gastroenterology Department of Clinical Emergency County Hospital Timisoara, Romania, with a diagnosis of NVUDB between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2016. All the data were collected from the patient’s records, including demographic data, medication history, hemodynamic status, paraclinical tests, and endoscopic features as well as the methods of hemostasis, rate of rebleeding, need for surgery and death;we also assessed the Rockall score of the patients, length of hospitalization and associated comorbidities. All these parameters were evaluated as potential risk factors associated with rebleeding and death in patients with NVUDB.RESULTS We included a batch of 1581 patients with NVUDB, including 523 (33%) females and 1058 (67%) males with a median age of 66 years. The main cause of NVUDB was peptic ulcer (73% of patients). More than one-third of the patients needed endoscopic treatment. Rebleeding rate was 7.72%;surgery due to failure of endoscopic hemostasis was needed in 3.22% of cases;the in-hospital mortality rate was 8.09%, and the bleeding-episode-related mortality rate was 2.97%. Although our predictive models for rebleeding and death had a low sensitivity, the specificity was very high, suggesting a better discriminative capacity for identifying patients with better outcomes. Our results showed that the Rockall score was associated with both rebleeding and death;comorbidities such as respiratory conditions, liver cirrhosis and sepsis increased significantly the risk of in-hospital mortality (OR of 3.29, 2.91 and 8.03). CONCLUSION Our study revealed that the Rockall score, need for endoscopic therapy, necessity of transfusion and sepsis were risk factors for rebleeding. Moreover, an increased Rockall score and the presence of comorbidities were predictive factors for inhospital mortality.

Urgent Endoscopy in Nonvariceal Upper Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage:A Retrospective Analysis

Objective:The role of urgent endoscopy in nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage(NVUGIH)remains controversial.We designed a retrospective study to compare the outcomes between urgent endoscopy(within 12 h)and non-urgent endoscopy for patients with NVUGIH.Methods:A total of 540 hospitalized patients with NVUGIH were included in our study.Patients who received endoscopy within 12 h or after 12 h were divided into two groups,the urgent and non-urgent endoscopy groups,respectively.The clinical outcomes including rebleeding,mortality,endoscopic re-intervention,need for emergency surgery and interventional radiotherapy were compared between the groups.Patients with Glasgow-Blatchford scores(GBS)<12 and>12 were defined as the lower-and high-risk groups,respectively,and the predictors of rebleeding and mortality in both groups were analyzed individually.Results:Patients with NVUGIH in the urgent endoscopy group had a higher rate of rebleeding(27.6%vs.16.9%,P=0.003)and blood transfusion(73.2%vs.55.5%,P<0.001)than those in the non-urgent endoscopy group,while the mortality and the length of hospitalization were not significantly different between the groups(P>0.05).For lower-risk patients,urgent endoscopy was independently associated with a higher likelihood of rebleeding(adjusted OR:1.73,95%CI:1.03-2.88),while it was not associated with in-hospital mortality.However,the urgent need for endoscopy was not associated with rebleeding and in-hospital mortality in high-risk patients.Conclusion:Endoscopy within 12 h did not provide any advantage in the outcomes of patients with NVUGIH,and may even lead to an increased rebleeding rate in lower-risk patients.

Endoscopic treatment modalities and outcomes in nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding

BACKGROUND In nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding(NVUGIB),the optimal volume of adrenaline,the optimal number of hemoclips,and the application of thermal coagulation in determining patient outcomes have not been well studied.AIM To demonstrate a dose-response relationship between the commonly used endoscopic modalities for the treatment of non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding and various clinical outcomes.METHODS Patients presenting with NVUGIB were retrospectively identified and analyzed.These patients were stratified as follows:(1)>10 mL of adrenaline injected vs≤10 mL;(2)>1 hemoclip placed vs≤1 hemoclip;(3)Heater probe used or not;and(4)>2 treatment modalities used vs≤2.The primary outcomes were rebleeding and the need for repeat endoscopy.The secondary outcomes were the need for surgery,required transfusions,length of hospital stay,death during the same admission period and 30 d mortality.Patients with NVUGIB who required endoscopic therapy were included.Those who did not require endoscopic therapy or were initially treated with surgery or embolization were excluded.RESULTS In all,501 patients with NVUGIB were treated.One hundred sixty-one(32.1%)patients needed endoscopic therapy.The injection of<10 mL of adrenaline was associated with less rebleeding(P<0.0001),the need for repeat endoscopy(P=0.001)and a decreased length of hospital stay(P=0.026).The use of>2 treatment modalities were associated with increased rebleeding(P=0.009)and the need for repeat endoscopy(P=0.048).The placement of>1 hemoclip was associated with a decreased length of hospital stay(P=0.044).The rates of surgery and death were low,and there were no other significant differences between the patient groups.CONCLUSION The more restrictive use of adrenaline and number of endoscopic modalities to treat NVUGIB with the more liberal use of hemoclips was associated with better patient outcomes.

Portal hypertensive gastropathy:A systematic review of thepathophysiology,clinical presentation,natural history andtherapy

AIM: To describe the pathophysiology, clinical presentation, natural history, and therapy of portal hypertensive gastropathy(PHG) based on a systematic literature review.METHODS: Computerized search of the literature was performed via Pub Med using the following medical subject headings or keywords: "portal" and "gastropathy"; or "portal" and "hypertensive"; or "congestive" and "gastropathy"; or "congestive" and "gastroenteropathy". The following criteria were applied for study inclusion: Publication in peer-reviewed journals, and publication since 1980. Articles were independently evaluated by each author and selected for inclusion by consensus after discussion based on the following criteria: Well-designed, prospective trials; recent studies; large study populations; and study emphasis on PHG. RESULTS: PHG is diagnosed by characteristic endoscopic findings of small polygonal areas of variable erythema surrounded by a pale, reticular border in a mosaic pattern in the gastric fundus/body in a patient with cirrhotic or non-cirrhotic portal hypertension. Histologic findings include capillary and venule dilatation, congestion, and tortuosity, without vascular fibrin thrombi or inflammatory cells in gastric submucosa. PHG is differentiated from gastric antral vascular ectasia by a different endoscopic appearance. The etiology of PHG is inadequately understood. Portal hypertension is necessary but insufficient to develop PHG because many patients have portal hypertension without PHG.PHG increases in frequency with more severe portal hypertension, advanced liver disease, longer liver disease duration, presence of esophageal varices, and endoscopic variceal obliteration. PHG pathogenesis is related to a hyperdynamic circulation, induced by portal hypertension, characterized by increased intrahepatic resistance to flow, increased splanchnic flow, increased total gastric flow, and most likely decreased gastric mucosal flow. Gastric mucosa in PHG shows increased susceptibility to gastrotoxic chemicals and poor wound healing. Nitrous oxide, free radicals, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and glucagon may contribute to PHG development. Acute and chronic gastrointestinal bleeding are the only clinical complications. Bleeding is typically mild-to-moderate. Endoscopic therapy is rarely useful because the bleeding is typically diffuse. Acute bleeding is primarily treated with octreotide, often with concomitant proton pump inhibitor therapy, or secondarily treated with vasopressin or terlipressin. Nonselective β-adrenergic receptor antagonists, particularly propranolol, are used to prevent bleeding after an acute episode or for chronic bleeding. Iron deficiency anemia from chronic bleeding may require iron replacement therapy. Transjugular-intrahepaticportosystemic-shunt or liver transplantation is highly successful ultimate therapies because they reduce the underlying portal hypertension.CONCLUSION: PHG is important to recognize in patients with cirrhotic or non-cirrhotic portal hypertension because it can cause acute or chronic GI bleeding that often requires pharmacologic therapy.

Gastric ulcer treated using an elastic traction ring combined with clip: A case report

BACKGROUND There is a high annual incidence of acute,nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding in Chinese adults.Early endoscopic intervention can reduce rates of rebleeding,surgery,and mortality.The metal clip is the most common method for establishing homeostasis;however,it possesses several limitations.In patients with bleeding secondary to large gastric ulcers,the clip will often fail to stop the bleeding.This article highlights the use of an elastic traction ring as a novel hemostatic method for patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.CASE SUMMARY An elderly male presented to the emergency room with complaints of hematemesis and melena.Endoscopic examination revealed an ulcer(Forrest IIa)in the lesser curvature of the gastric antrum.Six tissue clips and one elastic traction ring were inserted into the stomach cavity to suture the ulcer.The patient recovered quickly without postoperative gastrointestinal bleeding.Two months later,the patient's ulcer was significantly healed.CONCLUSION To our best knowledge,this is the first report to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of elastic traction rings for upper gastrointestinal bleeding.Elastic traction rings should be considered a routine therapeutic modality for patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeds.