Clinical-evolutionary relationship of patients with liver cirrhosis and esophageal varices treated with propranolol for the prevention of gastrointestinal bleeding
Abstract
Introduction: upper gastrointestinal bleeding is a sufficient blood loss to produce hematemesis or melena. Pharmacological treatment with non-cardioselective beta-blockers is effective in these cases; among these drugs, propranolol has proven effectiveness in reducing and preventing risks of first bleeding in 40-50 % of cases, as well as rebleeding in cirrhotic patients.
Objective: to evaluate the correlation between the clinical and the evolution of patients with liver cirrhosis and esophageal varices treated with propranolol for the prevention of digestive hemorrhages.
Method: a prospective longitudinal observational analytical study was carried out in a sample of 26 patients with esophageal varices treated in General Surgery and Gastroenterology consultations of the Provincial General Teaching Hospital "Dr. Antonio Luaces Iraola" in Ciego de Ávila, from May 2011 to May 2014. Patients were evaluated before, during and after treatment with propranolol.
Results: the time of evolution from diagnosis generally varied between two and four years; the most frequent varices were small or grade I. The third part of the patients had relapses associated with the size or varices degree. Deaths associated with advanced degrees of varices development were few. The final dose of propranolol was low in most patients and was associated with the occurrence of relapses and lethality.
Conclusions: the use of propranolol in patients with liver cirrhosis and esophageal varices contributed to the prevention of digestive bleeding.Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
MediCiego does not apply publication charges. The journal is available in open access without restrictions, in compliance with the international policy on open access to information for the exchange of global knowledge.
The authors will retain their copyright and guarantee the journal the right of first publication of their work. MediCiego is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/deed.es_ES), so it is allowed to copy, reproduce, distribute, publicly communicate the work and generate derivative works, as long as the original author is cited and acknowledged. However, it is not allowed to use the original work for commercial or lucrative purposes.
Authors must sign a copyright agreement through an affidavit of authorship and originality, before publishing.
The authors authorize the publication of their writings; they retain the copyright, and assign to the journal all the rights protected by the Copyright Law that governs Cuba, and implies the edition to disseminate the work.
Likewise, they may establish additional agreements for the non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in the journal (for example, placing it in an institutional repository or publishing it in a book), with the recognition of having been first published in this journal.
Declaration of authorship: download here the Affidavit