Resumen

HERRERA ESCANDON, Álvaro  y  BEJARANO CASTRO, Mónica. Use of prophylactic drugs for digestive hemorrhages in hospitalized patients at the Rafael Uribe Uribe Clinic in Cali, Colombia. Rev Col Gastroenterol [online]. 2009, vol.24, n.4, pp.340-346. ISSN 0120-9957.

Introduction. The use of prophylactic drugs for gastrointestinal bleeding makes up a big challenge for the physician, because of the resource optimization and the better benefits for the patients depends on its adequate use. Materials and methods. A prospective descriptive study was carried out including 305 patients hospitalized at Rafael Uribe Uribe Clinic (Cali, Colombia). We defined the gastrointestinal bleeding risk in each patient, identified the indication and use of prophylaxis, and searched for gastrointestinal hemorrhage signs. Results. The most frequent risk factors for gastrointestinal bleeding were the concomitant use of NSAIDS or steroids for at least one month (27.5%) and coagulopathy (12.8%); 53.8% of patients had indication for prophylaxis, because they had at least one of the risk criteria, and among them, 74.4% received the medication. In the remaining 46.2% of patients (with no indication for prophylaxis), 58.9% of the patients were given medication. There were 22 episodes of bleeding in all groups, and the associated variables were coagulopathy (RR 3.89), history of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, peptic ulcer or gastritis by endoscopy (3.09) and upper gastrointestinal bleeding at admission (15.94), independently of the use of prophylactic drugs. Conclusion. We recommend the administration of prophylactic medication in patients with risk factors, which should be mandatory in patients with multiple risk factors, and refrain from use in patients with no indications, because it raises the costs and has very low benefits to the patients.

Palabras clave : Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage; Peptic ulcer; Disease prevention; Melena; Hematemesis.

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