Impact of ethnicity in upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage.

GOALS: To examine ethnicity's role in the etiology and outcome of upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage (UGIH). BACKGROUND: UGIH is a serious condition with considerable associated morbidity and mortality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed 2196 patients admitted with acute UGIH between January 2006 and February 2012. Complete clinical data were gathered prospectively and entered into our GI Bleed Registry, which captures demographic and clinical variables. Results were analyzed using the χ² analyses and the analysis of variance techniques with Tukey multiple comparisons. RESULTS: Among 2196 patients, 620 (28%) were black, 625 (29%) white, 881 (40%) Hispanic, and 70 (3%) were members of other ethnicities. Gastroduodenal ulcers (25%), esophageal varices (25%), and esophagitis (12%) were the most frequently identified causes of UGIH. Blacks experienced a high rate of gastroduodenal ulcers (199/620), whereas Hispanics most commonly had esophageal varices. In all ethnicities, the most common cause of bleeding in patients younger than 35 or older than 65 years was gastroduodenal ulcer disease. However, among patients aged 35 to 64 years, there were differences in the etiology of UGIH. Blacks aged 50 to 64 years frequently experienced gastroduodenal ulcers, whereas Hispanics aged 35 to 49 years typically had esophageal varices. Rebleeding rates were significantly lower in whites (5.8%) than in Hispanics (9.9%) or blacks (8.7%) (P=0.02). CONCLUSIONS: By examining a diverse population, we conclude that UGIH may follow trends. Hispanics were likely to have esophageal varices and higher rebleeding rates, whereas blacks were likely to have ulcers and the highest mortality. Whites were equally likely to have ulcers or varices, but a lower rate of rebleeding.

Decreasing in-hospital mortality for oesophageal variceal hemorrhage in the USA.

BACKGROUND: To date, no study has analyzed nationwide trends of in-hospital mortality related to oesophageal variceal hemorrhage in the USA. The aim of this study was to analyze trends of in-hospital mortality related to oesophageal variceal bleeding over the past two decades using a large national database. In addition, our aim was to study patient demographics and to identify risk factors for in-hospital mortality based on administrative data routinely collected in this population. METHODS: The nationwide inpatient sample database was used from 1988 to 2004. Patients with an International Classification of Diseases, ninth revision, Clinical Modification discharge diagnosis of oesophageal variceal bleeding were included. Patient demographics, hospital, and admission characteristics were collected. t-test and Poisson regression analysis were used to evaluate trends. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the relationship between mortality and patient/hospital characteristics. RESULTS: From 1988 to 2004, crude in-hospital mortality decreased from 18 to 11.5%, whereas the age-adjusted in-hospital mortality rate decreased 45.4% from 1289 per 100,000 to 704 per 100,000 (P<0.01). Mortality was consistently higher for males and for African-Americans over the study period. For the 2001 dataset, multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that male sex, African-American race, age, large hospital size, urban location, teaching hospitals, and hospitals located in the northeast were independent risk factors for increased mortality. CONCLUSION: The in-hospital mortality of patients with oesophageal variceal bleeding has decreased over the past two decades and is likely due to the advances made in the acute management of variceal bleeding as well as improved resuscitative methods. Male sex, African-American race, age, large hospital size, urban location, teaching hospitals, and hospitals located in the northeast are independent risk factors for increased in-hospital mortality.

Etiological spectrum of esophageal varices due to portal hypertension in Indian children: is it different from the West?

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Information about portal hypertension (PHT) in children is meagre. We therefore studied the spectrum and outcome of PHT in children (

Comparison of endoscopic findings in patients from different ethnic groups undergoing endoscopy for upper gastrointestinal bleed in eastern Nepal.

Upper gastrointestinal (UGI) bleed is one of the commonest medical emergencies. Cultural customs and practices may influence the development of disease conditions that may lead to UGI bleed. The purpose of this study was to compare the causes of UGI bleed in different ethnic groups among patients presenting to a large tertiary care hospital with acute UGI bleed. A retrospective study was conducted examining data available in the endoscopy register at the B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences (BPKIHS) in Nepal for patients presenting with UGI bleed over one calendar year. Study subjects were categorized into one of a few broad categories of ethnic groups: Khas, Newar, SeTaMaGuRaLi, Maithali and others. Demographic information and endoscopic diagnoses were abstracted. The relative frequencies of different causes of UGI bleed were compared across the ethnic groups using the chi2 test. One hundred and eighty-nine patients underwent endoscopy for UGI bleed in the time period studied. The mean age of the study cohort was 49.6 years and consisted of 71.0% males and 29.0% females. Overall the commonest cause of upper GI bleed was gastric ulcer. Esophageal varices was the commonest cause in the SeTaMaGuRaLi group, accounting for 33.3%. The relative frequency of esophageal varices as the cause of upper GI bleed was statistically significantly different among the various ethnic groups, with the SeTaMaGuRaLi group having the highest relative frequency (p-value 0.02). Physicians taking care of patients with upper GI bleed in Nepal should be aware of the high relative frequency of esophageal varices as a cause of upper GI bleed, and especially so among certain ethnic groups.

Racial disparities in the management of hospitalized patients with cirrhosis and complications of portal hypertension: a national study.

UNLABELLED: Having complications of portal hypertension is a harbinger of decompensated cirrhosis and warrants consideration for liver transplantation (LT). Racial disparities in LT have been reported. We sought to characterize disparities in the performing of surgical and endoscopic procedures among hospitalized patients with complications of portal hypertension. We queried the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 1998 to 2003 to identify patients with cirrhosis and complications of portal hypertension. Logistic regression controlling for confounders was used to evaluate race as a predictor of undergoing a portosystemic shunt and LT and of dying in the hospital. Compared to whites, the adjusted odds ratios of receiving a portosystemic shunt were 0.37 (95% CI: 0.27-0.51) and 0.69 (95% CI: 0.54-0.88) for African Americans (AAs) and Hispanics, respectively. AAs with variceal bleeding were more likely to have endoscopic variceal hemostasis delayed more than 24 hours after admission than were whites (OR 1.6; 95% CI: 1.2-2.1). The adjusted odds ratios of undergoing LT were 0.32 (95% CI:0.20-0.52) and 0.46 (95% CI: 0.25-0.83) for AAs and Hispanics, respectively. Compared to whites, AAs experienced higher in-hospital mortality (OR 1.12; 95% CI: 1.01-1.24), whereas Hispanics had a lower risk of death (OR 0.83; 95% CI: 0.75-0.92). Among variceal bleeders, the odds ratio of death for AAs was 1.7 (95% CI: 1.2-2.4) compared to whites. CONCLUSION: AAs and Hispanics hospitalized for complications of portal hypertension were less likely to undergo a palliative shunt or LT than whites, which may contribute to the higher in-hospital mortality of AAs. Further studies are warranted to elucidate the mechanisms of these exploratory findings.