Esophageal Varices with Bleeding

Esophageal Varices with Bleeding – General Information

When we say that a patient suffers from esophageal varices, this means he or she presents dilated, tortuous veins that are found in the esophagus’ wall. These types of veins are most common at the esophagus’s distal end (which means they are placed near the gastro-esophageal junction).

Esophageal Varices with Bleeding generally affects patients who are suffering from various types of liver medical conditions (especially the most severe ones that can develop to portal hypertension and / or cirrhosis). All patients who suffer from this medical disorder ought to be aware that this is a very severe, potentially lethal disease, as it can trigger various complications. It is very important for a patient to be given immediate medical attention, as soon as the diagnosis has been made. Therapy in the early stages of this medical condition gives the patient a much better prognosis. After the individual has undergone an intensive therapy, he or she ought to discuss with their personal health care provider regarding the measures that ought to be taken in order to reduce the reoccurrence of this disease (the risk of re-bleeding).

Esophageal Varices with Bleeding is one of the most deadly complications that could a patient who is suffering from portal hypertension could develop. Studies have shown that 32,000 individuals who suffer from cirrhosis die each year due to this severe complication. However, although the presence of esophageal varices is a quite common complication in the case of individuals who present cirrhosis, only one third of the reported clinical cases experience variceal bleeding.

Esophageal Varices with Bleeding – Symptoms

Like most other medical conditions, this disorder triggers a set of specific signs and / or symptoms that enable a patient to notice that something is wrong. Furthermore, these symptoms, along with some medical exams will help the professional health care specialist make a correct diagnosis for patients who suffer from Esophageal Varices with Bleeding. It is known that the symptoms of this medical condition are known to occur quite suddenly, surprisingly. The most common signs of this disorder are:

• coughing up blood;
• vomiting and / or nausea;
• bloody vomit;
• lightheadedness (this clinical symptom has been associated with the constant loss of blood);
• tarry, black stools (they appear this way because of the patient’s gut bleeding);
• passing out (fainting), also due to the intense loss of blood;
• bloody stools;
• excessive thirst;
• decreased urination;
• paleness.

All individuals who suffer from Esophageal Varices with Bleeding ought to be aware of the fact that their condition is actually a complication of another disorder that affects his or her liver. This is why this medical condition’s symptoms have been associated with the signs of liver medical conditions. The most common symptoms of liver disorders are the following: tiredness, weakness, and malaise; massive and / or sudden bleeding; anorexia; weight loss; vomiting and / or nausea; abdominal pain and / or discomfort and pain (generally located under the patient’s right lower ribs (back, side or front), in his or her right hypochondrium, on the patient’s left hypochondrium and in the patient’s epigastrium); abdominal swelling and / or edema; dark urine; jaundice; easy bruising; abnormal bleeding; pruritus; sexual dysfunction; impotence; encephalopathic symptoms; muscle cramps.  

Esophageal Varices with Bleeding - Treatment

If you develop any of the signs / symptoms that we have mentioned in the previous chapter, we recommend you to seek professional help at once, as you might be suffering from Esophageal Varices with Bleeding. Before your personal health care provider will put you through a detailed physical medical examination, he or she will probably want to know more about your symptoms (their severity, when they first started to occur) and about your personal and / or family history. Based on these pieces of information, your doctor will be able to determine which type of medical exams you will have to undergo. Most physicians perform clinical tests that set their blood pressure levels, liver function tests, rectal exams, nasogastric (also generally abbreviated as NG) tube, esophagogastroduodenoscopy (commonly abbreviated as EGD), and so on. The main purpose of the therapy for Esophageal Varices with Bleeding is to end the acute bleeding in due time and to deal with the existent esophageal varices with the help of medical procedures and medication therapies. It is very important for a patient to keep his esophageal bleeding under strict control, as this symptom can lead to shock, coma, and even death. In case the patient starts to experience massive, uncontrollable bleeding, he or she will have to be given emergency medical attention: the individual should be placed on a ventilator as soon as possible (in this way, the blood will not be allowed to go down into the patient’s lungs, as the airways are protected).