Injection sclerotherapy for esophageal varices caused by schistosomal hepatic fibrosis.

Sixty patients with esophageal varices caused by schistosomal hepatic fibrosis were managed by injection sclerotherapy. Bleeding was controlled in 17 of 20 patients (85%) with acute bleeding from varices. The remaining 40 patients were either unfit for operation or had a recurrence of variceal bleeding after operation. In a period of follow-up that ranged from 14 to 31 months (mean 18.4 months), 11 patients (18.3%) had a recurrence of bleeding that was controlled and four patients (6.7%) had a fatal recurrence of bleeding. The overall mortality rate was 25% (15 patients), and 34 patients (56.7%) had no recurrence of bleeding.