Clinical and Endoscopic Profile of Upper Gastrointestinal Bleed: A Cross-sectional Study from a Tertiary Care Hospital in Southern India

Acute Upper Gastrointestinal (UGI) bleed is a common potentially life threatening emergency. The aetiological profile of bleed and prognosis varies according to geographical region and availability of endoscopic facilities. Aim: To determine the clinical and endoscopic profile of UGI bleed, risk factors and prognosis in the patients. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted over a period of 12 months at a tertiary care centre in Southern India. Patients admitted with history of hematemesis and melena, satisfying the inclusion criteria was taken consecutively. Clinical and endoscopic profile were noted and followed-up for six weeks. Statistical analysis was performed using chi-square test for qualitative variables and independent t-test for quantitative variables. Significance level was fixed as p-value of <0.05. Results: A total of 138 patients were studied in this period. The male to female ratio in the study was 3.5:1. The mean age was 53.5±13.17 years. The most common clinical presentation was hematemesis in 57 patients (41.3%) followed by haematemesis and melena in 46 patients (33.3%). The most common cause on endoscopy was portal hypertension-related oesophageal and gastric varices (51.4%) followed by antral gastritis (15.2%). The cause of UGI bleeding could not be identified in 5.1% in which the endoscopy was normal. Haemogram, platelet count and serum albumin were significantly lower in variceal bleed group, compared to non-variceal group. Eleven patients succumbed to death secondary to UGI bleed. Conclusion: The most common causes of UGI bleed are portal hypertension related gastric and oesophageal varices. The in-hospital mortality in the study was 7.9%.