Absolute ethanol and 5% ethanolamine oleate are comparable for sclerotherapy of esophageal varices

Background: Endoscopic sclerotherapy is widely accepted as an effective tre atment for the eradication of esophageal varices in patients with portal hy pertension and a history of upper gastrointestinal bleeding. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of absolute ethano l as an alternative sclerosing agent to the commonly used 5% ethanolamine o leate. Methods: One hundred fifty-seven patients with portal hypertension and a hi story of variceal bleeding were randomly assigned to sclerotherapy with abs olute ethanol (n = 66) or 5% ethanolamine oleate (n = 91) between January 1 992 and July 1994. Once eradication was achieved, these patients were prosp ectively followed until September 1998. Results: Sclerotherapy with both sclerosants resulted in similar eradicatio n rates (similar to 90%), with comparable numbers of sessions required for eradication (5.4 and 5.9 sessions for absolute ethanol and 5% ethanolamine oleate, respectively). Similar complication and recurrent bleeding rates we re observed among both groups. Conclusion: Sclerotherapy with absolute ethanol is as effective as with 5% ethanolamine oleate in preventing further bleeding in patients with portal hypertension.