"The clinical presentation depends on the type of oesophageal varices. The most common type, uphill oesophageal varices, will generally be asymptomatic until a variceal haemorrhage, which occurs at a yearly rate of 5-15% 1,4. In the case of a variceal bleed, patients will usually present with stigmata of upper gastrointestinal bleeding: haematemesis, melaena, presyncope and syncope, and progression to hypovolaemic shock 1. The primary predictor of variceal bleed is variceal wall tension, which is a metric that encompasses vessel diameter (larger is worse) and pressure (higher is worse) 1. Additionally, patients will often have stigmata of portal hypertension and cirrhosis – the most common aetiological basis for oesophageal varices."
Expected headings
"Fluoroscopy"
"Oesophageal varices are present in ~50% of patients with portal hypertension 1,4. They occur in greater frequency in patients with more severe cirrhosis; for example, oesophageal varices may be present in ~40% of patients with Child-Pugh A cirrhosis, but in ~85% of patients with Child-Pugh C cirrhosis 1,4."
"the most common cause of this phenomenon is cirrhosis secondary to alcohol excess 1-3; however, less common aetiologies include primary biliary cholangitis, primary sclerosing cholangitis, portal vein thrombosis, Budd-Chiari syndrome, and schistosomiasis 4"
"The gold-standard investigation for the evaluation of oesophageal varices is oesophagogastroduodenoscopy; however, radiographic investigations may serve as a useful adjunct."
"The clinical presentation depends on the type of oesophageal varices. The most common type, uphill oesophageal varices, will generally be asymptomatic until a variceal haemorrhage, which occurs at a yearly rate of 5-15% 1,4. In the case of a variceal bleed, patients will usually present with stigmata of upper gastrointestinal bleeding: haematemesis, melaena, presyncope and syncope, and progression to hypovolaemic shock 1. The primary predictor of variceal bleed is variceal wall tension, which is a metric that encompasses vessel diameter (larger is worse) and pressure (higher is worse) 1. Additionally, patients will often have stigmata of portal hypertension and cirrhosis – the most common aetiological basis for oesophageal varices."