Left Gastric Vein Width Is an Important Risk Factor for Exacerbation of Esophageal Varices Post Balloon-Occluded Retrograde Transvenous Obliteration for Gastric Varices in Cirrhotic Patients
Taku Mizutani,
Kazushige Nirei,
Tatsuo Kanda,
Masayuki Honda,
Tomotaka Ishii,
Shuhei Arima,
Yoichiro Yamana,
Naoki Matsumoto,
Shunichi Matsuoka,
Mitsuhiko Moriyama
Affiliations
Taku Mizutani
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Kazushige Nirei
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Tatsuo Kanda
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Masayuki Honda
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Tomotaka Ishii
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Shuhei Arima
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Yoichiro Yamana
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Naoki Matsumoto
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Shunichi Matsuoka
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Mitsuhiko Moriyama
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi-kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Background and Objectives: Balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (BRTO) could be currently one of the best therapies for patients with gastric varices. This study examined the exacerbation rates for esophageal varices following BRTO for gastric varices in patients with hepatic cirrhosis. Materials and Methods: We enrolled 91 cirrhotic patients who underwent BRTO for gastric varices. In total, 50 patients were examined for exacerbation rates of esophageal varices following BRTO. Esophageal varices and their associated exacerbation were evaluated by upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Patients were allocated into two groups according to the main inflow tract for gastric varices: (1) 37 patients in the left gastric vein (LGV) group with an LGV width of more than 3.55 mm, and (2) 13 patients in the non-LGV group who had short gastric vein or posterior gastric vein. Moreover, treatment outcomes were retrospectively analyzed. Results: LGV width (p p = 0.03). In more than half of the subjects, LGV was the main inflow tract for gastric varices, and this group experienced more frequent exacerbations of esophageal varices following BRTO compared to patients with different inflow tract sources. Conclusion: Careful attention should be paid to the LGV width when BRTO is performed for gastric varices.
