Observational Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Endosc. Jan 16, 2024; 16(1): 44-50
Published online Jan 16, 2024. doi: 10.4253/wjge.v16.i1.44
Upper gastrointestinal bleeding in Bangladeshi children: Analysis of 100 cases
Md Wahiduzzaman Mazumder, Md Benzamin
Md Wahiduzzaman Mazumder, Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh
Md Benzamin, Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Sylhet M A G Osmani Medical College Hospital, Sylhet 3100, Bangladesh
Author contributions: Mazumder MW designed the research study and performed the research; Benzamin M analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript; All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the departmental Ethics Committee of the Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition of Bangabandhu Shiekh Mujib Medical University (Approval No. BSMMU/Ped. Gastro/2023/122).
Informed consent statement: As this was a retrospective study, consent from parents/patients was unnecessary.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement—checklist of items.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Md Wahiduzzaman Mazumder, FCPS, MD (Pediatric Gastroenterology), Associate professor, Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Shahbag, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh. mazumdermw@gmail.com
Received: October 16, 2023
Peer-review started: October 16, 2023
First decision: November 9, 2023
Revised: November 20, 2023
Accepted: December 7, 2023
Article in press: December 7, 2023
Published online: January 16, 2024
Processing time: 90 Days and 14.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) is defined as bleeding that occurs proximal to the ligament of Treitz and can sometimes lead to potentially serious and life-threatening clinical situations in children. Globally, the cause of UGIB differs significantly depending on the geographic location, patient population and presence of comorbid conditions.

AIM

To observe endoscopic findings of UGIB in children at a tertiary care center of Bangladesh.

METHODS

This retrospective study was carried out in the department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition of Bangabandhu Shiekh Mujib Medical University, a tertiary care hospital of Bangladesh, between January 2017 and January 2019. Data collected from hospital records of 100 children who were 16 years of age or younger, came with hematemesis, melena or both hematemesis and melena. All patients underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (Olympus CV 1000 upper gastrointestinal video endoscope) after initial stabilization. Necessary investigations to diagnose portal hypertension and chronic liver disease with underlying causes for management purposes were also done.

RESULTS

A total of 100 patients were studied. UGIB was common in the age group 5-10 years (42%), followed by above 10 years (37%). Hematemesis was the most common presenting symptom (75%) followed by both hematemesis and melena (25%). UGIB from ruptured esophageal varices was the most common cause (65%) on UGI endoscopy followed by gastric erosion (5%) and prolapsed gastropathy (2%). We observed that 23% of children were normal after endoscopic examination.

CONCLUSION

Ruptured esophageal varices were the most common cause of UGIB in children in Bangladesh. Other causes included gastric erosions and prolapsed gastropathy syndrome.

Keywords: Bangladeshi; Children; Endoscopy; Upper gastrointestinal bleeding; Esophageal varices

Core Tip: Various etiologies are responsible for upper gastrointestinal bleeding. However, we found a wide range of etiologies including non-gastrointestinal causes in Bangladeshi children.