Long-Term Survivors after Variceal Haemorrhage:Follow-up of a Controlled Study of Endoscopic Sclerotherapy versus Conservative Management

Abstract

In a prospective controlled trial of conservative therapy (vasopressin/balloon tamponade (control group)) versus endoscopic sclerotherapy (ST) for the acute bleeding and at rebleeding, 107 cirrhotic patients with major variceal haemorrhage were studied from 1979 to 1983. The prospective follow-up study is now presented of the 51 patients surviving for more than 1 year. The present ST group (30 patients) was followed for a median of 5 years (range, 1-7.5 years), and the controls for 4 years (3-5.5 years). Variceal eradication was obtained in 22 ST patients in the 1st year after a median of 6 months and 5 ST sessions, and in 7 ST patients after 21 months and 9 ST sessions. The delay was due to alcoholic abuse. Eleven ST patients and 11 controls (NS) rebled on 30 and 45 occasions during a total follow-up time of 1364 and 696 months and 0.0220 and 0.0647 bleeds per patient-month, respectively (p = 0.098). Eight ST patients experienced 12 variceal bleeds, 11 controls had 39 haemorrhages with variceal aetiology, 0.0088 and 0.0560 bleeds per patient-month (p = 0.016), respectively. Five ST patients had recurrent varices on nine occasions with five episodes of bleeding a median of 13 months after completion of the initial serial ST. Reelimination was achieved with a median of three ST sessions during 3 months, but three patients had a second variceal recurrence 14-24 months later, successfully treated with one ST session in two of them. There was no difference in survival. Eleven patients of the ST group and nine controls died–in six and three patients, respectively, due to hepatic failure without bleeding. One ST patient and five controls died in connection with variceal haemorrhage.

Key Words:

• Bleeding oesophageal varices
• controlled clinical trial
• endoscopic sclerotherapy
• liver cirrhosis
• long-term follow-up
• portal hypertension