Portal hypertensive gastropathy

Abstract

Portal hypertensive gastropathy (PHG), a term used to describe the endoscopic appearance of gastric mucosa with a characteristic mosaic-like pattern with or without red spots, is a common finding in patients with portal hypertension. Current classification systems that describe the severity of PHG have many limitations, but it appears that simple grading systems have better inter- and intraobserver agreement. The wide variation in the reported prevalence of PHG is probably related to selection bias, absence of uniform criteria and classification, and more importantly, the differences in inter- and intraobserver variation. Pathogenesis of PHG is not clearly defined, but there is a very close relationship between portal hypertension and development of PHG. GAVE is a separate entity from PHG, but patients with severe PHG may have a GAVE-like appearance in the gastric antrum. Acute bleeding from PHG, seen usually in the presence of severe PHG, is often mild and self-limiting. Currently, the only treatment that could be recommended for prophylaxis of bleeding from PHG is nonselective ß-blockers.