Duodenal varices: a novel treatment and literature review

Hemorrhage associated with duodenal varices is an uncommon but often fatal manifestation of portal hypertension. We report a case of duodenal varices, review the literature, and present a new treatment modality. A 63-year-old man presented with hematemesis and hematochezia. An upper gastrointestinal endoscopy revealed hemorrhage from the duodenal varices that was initially controlled with injections of epinephrine. However, this was only partially successful, as the patient had repeated episodes of bleeding that was not amenable to injection sclerotherapy. The patient was taken emergently to the operating room after endoscopy failed to control the hemorrhage. The bleeding was controlled with simple oversewing of the duodenal varices through a duodenotomy. Three years later the patient remains symptom free. We propose that simple oversewing of duodenal variceal veins combined with a beta-blocker is an effective treatment for duodenal variceal hemorrhage.