On the prevention of gastrointestinal bleeding in burned patients treated with omeprazole

Abstract

Background: The incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding in patients with severe burns can reach up to 10%.Objective: Evaluation of the risk factors for gastrointestinal bleeding and of the effectiveness of stress ulcer prophylaxis in patients with severe burns receiving proton pump inhibitors.Material and methods: The study included the results of treatment of 270 patients with burns more than 10% of total body surface area (TBSA), in whom 13 potential risk factors for gastrointestinal bleeding were studied. All patients received omeprazole therapy with 40 mg № 1 intravenous or 20 mg № 2 orally. The data obtained were processed in Microsoft Office Excel 2007 and IBM SPSS 20.0.Results: Significant risk factors for gastrointestinal bleeding were hypotension requiring treatment with vasopressors (dopamine ≥ 10 μg/kg/min or norepinephrine ≥ 0.5 μg/kg/min) for 2 or more days (χ2 = 5.126; p = 0.024) and full thickness burns with more than 50% of total body surface area (χ2 = 7.031; p = 0.008). The incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding was 4%. These bleedings were hemodynamically insignificant; in all cases, acute ulcers were the cause for them. There were no recurrences of bleeding and no repeated endoscopy or surgical treatment was required. The developed bleeding did not have a significant effect on mortality.Conclusion: Using proton pump inhibitors minimizes the frequency and intensity of gastrointestinal bleeding and also prevents lifethreatening complications during their development. More complex prevention of stress ulceration is necessary for patients with full thickness burns more than 50% of TBSA which develop hypotension requiring long‑term vasopressor therapy.

Keywords

• burns
• burn disease
• gastrointestinal bleeding
• risk factors