Abstract
Aim:To investigate whether mean platelet volume (MPV) is a predictor of variceal bleeding in patients with cirrhotic portal hypertension.Materials and methods:This prospective cohort was performed in the internal medicine department of our tertiary care center. Cirrhotic patients were allocated into two groups: Group I consisted of 31 cases without a history of variceal bleeding, whereas group II was made up of 31 patients with a history of variceal bleeding. Data derived from medical history, physical examination, ultrasonography, gastrointestinal system endoscopy, complete blood count, hepatic, and renal function tests were recorded and compared between two groups. On physical examination, encephalopathy and ascites were evaluated and graded with respect to Child-Pugh-Turcotte classification.Results:There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, duration of the disease, and gender of the patient. The only remarkable difference was that hemoglobin (p = 0.02) and hematocrit (p = 0.02) values were lower in group II. Neither the etiology of bleeding was different between groups nor did MPV seem to have a noteworthy impact on bleeding. Interestingly, risk of variceal bleeding increased in parallel to the higher grade of varices.Conclusion:Our results imply that there is a correlation between the grade of varices and esophageal vari-ceal bleeding in cirrhotic patients. However, association between MPV and variceal bleeding could not be demonstrated. Utilization of noninvasive tests as predictors in these patients necessitates further controlled trials on larger series.How to cite this article: Erdogan MA, Benli AR, Acmali SB, Koroglu M, Atayan Y, Danalioglu A, Kayhan B. Predictive Value of Mean Platelet Volume in Variceal Bleeding due to Cirrhotic Portal Hypertension. Euroasian J Hepato-Gastroenterol 2017;7(1):6-10.
Highlights
One of the most important causes of mortality in patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension is upper gastrointestinal system (GIS) bleeding
Neither the etiology of bleeding was different between groups nor did mean platelet volume (MPV) seem to have a noteworthy impact on bleeding
Our results imply that there is a correlation between the grade of varices and esophageal variceal bleeding in cirrhotic patients
Summary
One of the most important causes of mortality in patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension is upper gastrointestinal system (GIS) bleeding. Even though prediction of the occurrence of bleeding attributed to esophageal varices in cirrhosis is mostly difficult, clinical and endoscopic signs that point out a higher risk of bleeding have been reported. Some of these clues include the size of the esophageal varices, the presence of cherry-red spots, and the severity of cirrhosis evaluated according to the Child–Pugh classification.[1] Since esophageal variceal bleeding comprises 80 to 90% of all bleeding from the upper GIS in cirrhotic patients, timely recognition and classification of patients under a high risk of variceal bleeding is critical.[2]. There is evidence for utilization of alternative methods including ultrasonography rather than endoscopy for diagnosis of esophageal varices.[5]
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