A case of complete resolution of gastric varices.

BACKGROUND: A 49-year-old woman with hepatitis C and peptic ulcer disease presented to the emergency department after an onset of sudden massive hematemesis. She had a history of alcohol abuse, but denied any recent excessive drinking. INVESTIGATIONS: Physical examination, laboratory investigations including complete blood cell counts and liver function tests, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, abdominal angiography and venography, CT scans of the abdomen and pelvis. DIAGNOSIS: Gastric variceal hemorrhage, severe portal hypertensive gastropathy, splenic vein thrombosis. MANAGEMENT: Blood transfusion, splenic artery embolization and balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration of gastric varices. Immediate postprocedural CT scans of the abdomen, with repeat imaging 30 months later.