Table 3.
Effects of variceal ligation on frequency of portal hypertensive gastropathy
| Ref. | No. of patients and etiology | Study type | PHG rate before variceal ligation | PHG aggravation after variceal ligation | P value of pre vs post EVL |
| Hou et al[73] | 90 patients with cirrhosis and recent variceal bleeding, 46 patients underwent EVL | Randomized, controlled trial | No PHG-4, mild PHG-33, severe-PHG-9 | At eradication: 17/37; 17/37 (45.9%) in EVL; at 3 mo: 17/30 (56.7%); at 6 mo 18/29 (62.1%) | P > 0.05 |
| Elnaser et al[80] | 125 patients with upper GI bleeding undergoing variceal ligation, followed for mean of 31 mo | Retrospective study | 22/125 (17.6%) | 50/125 (50%) | P < 0.05 |
| Yüksel et al[41] | 114 patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension undergoing EVL in 85 patients | Retrospective study | 27/85 (31.8%) none; 28/85 (32.9%) mild; 30/85 (35.3%) severe | 14/85 (16.5%) none; 30/85 (35.3%) mild; 41/85 (48.2%) severe | P < 0.05 |
| Lo et al[81] | 77 patients with bleeding from EV underwent variceal ligation and were randomized to receive propranolol (37/77) or control (40/77); patients with severe PHG prior to treatment excluded from the study | Prospective, randomized, controlled trial | Control group: 7/40 (17%); propranolol group: 8/37 (22%) | At variceal ligation: Control group: 67% (does not state number); Propranolol group: 31% (number not stated); 6 mo after treatment: Control group: 85% (number not stated) propranolol group: 48% (number not stated) | Pre vs post ligation, both groups; P < 0.05; frequency of PHG significantly higher in control group post ligation when compared to propranolol group; P = 0.002 |
| de la Peña et al[82] | 93 patients with history of variceal hemorrhage and cirrhosis, randomized to receive either EVS (46/88) or EVL (42/88); 5 patients excluded due to diagnosis of hepatoma, non-cirrhotic portal hypertension or portal vein thrombosis | Randomized, prospective study | Not reported | PHG significantly worsened in 23 patients, including 17 patients undergoing EVL | P < 0.01 |
PHG: Portal hypertensive gastropathy; EVL: Endoscopic variceal ligation; EVS: Endoscopic variceal sclerotherapy.