Additional Benefits Conferred by Endoscopic Sclerotherapy to Liver Cirrhosis Patients Receiving Endoscopic Variceal Ligation

OBJECTIVE: Gastroesophageal varices are a direct consequence of portal hypertension in cirrhosis. The management of gastroesophageal varices has evolved over the last decade resulting in reduced mortality and morbidity rates. The study was aimed to analyze the short-term and long-term efficacy of different endoscopic methods in the treatment of gastric varices in cirrhotic patients. METHODS: From January 2016 to December 2019, 135 patients with liver cirrhosis and gastric varices undergoing different endoscopic treatment protocols were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into three groups according to endoscopic variceal ligation, endoscopic sclerotherapy, and a combination of both, respectively. Main outcomes including the overall response rate, hemostasis, short- and long-term rebleeding (3 months before and after treatment), complication, blood pressure, heart rate, portal venous pressure (PVP), portal vein diameter (PVD), portal vein velocity (PVV), portal vein blood flow (PVF) detected by ultrasound, recurrence rate, and mortality were analyzed after treatments. RESULTS: The overall response rate in the combined group was higher than that in the ligation group and the sclerotherapy group (P < 0.05). The incidence rate of complications in the combined group and the ligation group was lower than that in the sclerotherapy group (P < 0.05). After treatment, the PVP, PVD, and PVF were reduced in the combined group compared with the ligation group and the sclerotherapy group, while the PVV was not (P < 0.05). Lower rates of long-term rebleeding, recurrence, and mortality were noted in the combined group compared to the ligation group and the sclerotherapy group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Endoscopic variceal ligation combined with endoscopic sclerotherapy is more effective than both alone in treating liver cirrhosis and gastric varices. The combined therapy contributed to reduced short-term and long-term rebleeding rate, decreased long-term recurrence rate, and mortality.