Acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) is a common medical emergency with an annual incidence of approximately 130 per 100,000 adults in Hong Kong. Acute gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is a potentially life-threatening condition associated with high morbidity and mortality. Bleeding may occur throughout the GI tract. The most frequent cause of UGIB is peptic ulcer disease, which accounts for 35-50% of reported cases. Other underlying etiologies of UGIB include gastroduodenal erosions (8-15%), esophagitis (5-15%), varices (5-10%), Mallory-Weiss tears (15%), and vascular malformations (5%).
Symptoms of upper gastrointestinal bleeding are hematemesis, coffee ground vomiting and tarry stool. In some severe cases, it may lead to dealth.
