emDocs - January 5, 2018 - By Salim Rezaie
Originally published at R.E.B.E.L. EM on February 23, 2017. Reposted with permission.
"Upper gastrointestinal bleeding remains a common reason for emergency department visits and is a major cause of morbidity, mortality, and medical care costs. Often when these patients arrive, the classic IV-O2-Monitor is initiated and hemodynamic stability is assessed. One of the next steps often performed includes the initiation of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).
The ultimate question however is does initiation of PPIs reduce clinically relevant outcomes (i.e. mortality, rebleeding, need for surgical intervention) in upper gastrointestinal bleeds (UGIB)?"