Endoscopic sclerotherapy for varices in children.

Thirty-one children with variceal bleeding due to portal hypertension (extrahepatic obstruction 19, non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis five, and cirrhosis of liver seven patients) were treated with endoscopic sclerotherapy with absolute alcohol. Acute variceal bleeding was successfully controlled in 10 patients by emergency sclerotherapy. A 3 weekly schedule of sclerotherapy could achieve obliteration of varices in all the patients. The mean (+/- SD) number of sclerotherapy courses and the time required for variceal eradication was 4.5 +/- 1.7 and 14.4 +/- 3.9 weeks, respectively. During a mean follow-up of 23.3 +/- 11.4 months, variceal recurrence was seen in three (9.7%) patients, two with cirrhosis and one with noncirrhotic portal fibrosis. Recurrence was not seen in any patient with extrahepatic obstruction. Five (16.1%) patients had a rebleed that could be controlled with emergency sclerotherapy. Esophageal stricture developed in four (12.9%) patients and could be dilated easily in all of them. The other complications of sclerotherapy included retrosternal pain, dysphagia, and fever; these were mild and short lasting. Survival in patients with extrahepatic obstruction and noncirrhotic portal fibrosis was 100%. The only death was in a cirrhotic, who died due to terminal hepatic failure. In conclusion, endoscopic sclerotherapy can be recommended as a safe and effective treatment in children for the control of acute variceal bleeding and for variceal obliteration.