Trends in management and outcomes of acute nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding: 1993-2003

Abstract

Background & aims: ANVUGIB is a common reason for hospital admission and has been traditionally associated with a mortality rate of 5%-10%. There have been numerous innovations in the prevention and management of ANVUGIB in recent years, although the effect of these innovations on ANVUGIB incidence and outcomes is unknown.

Methods: We used the Statistics Canada's Health Person Oriented Information Database [corrected], which contains data characterizing every inpatient hospital admission in Canada between 1993 and 2003. We identified admissions consistent with nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding using both a broad and narrow ICD-9/ICD-10-based definition. Data were extracted concerning patient demographics, incidence of surgery for complications of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, and overall mortality.

Results: Between 1993 and 2003, ANVUGIB incidence decreased from 77.1 cases to 53.2 per 100,000/y for the broad definition, and from 52.4 to 34.3 cases per 100,000/y for the narrow definition. ANVUGIB incidence rose slightly in 2000, coincident with the introduction of COX-2 inhibitors. The proportion of ANVUGIB subjects requiring surgical intervention declined over the 10 years from 7.1% to 4.5%, although the rate of decline did not increase after the introduction of intravenous proton pump inhibitors (IV PPIs). The mortality rate remained steady at approximately 3.5%.

Conclusions: The incidence of ANVUGIB and the need for operative intervention has been steadily declining since 1993. ANVUGIB-associated mortality remained constant, although at a rate lower than traditionally reported. The impact of IV PPIs on mortality and operative intervention on a population-wide basis is likely minimal.