Page created on October 15, 2021. Not updated since.
Introduction
For introduction, etiology, clinical features, diagnosis, and non-surgical treatment, see topic 72 of internal medicine.
Surgical treatment
Surgical therapy is indicated if endoscopic therapy fails, if the ulcer is large (> 2 cm), if there is perforation, or if the bleeding is so large that the patient requires many units of blood (4 – 6). However, > 90% of gastrointestinal bleedings are managed without surgery.
Surgical options depend on the underlying cause and include:
- Bleeding ulcer
- Oversewing the ulcer
- Vagotomy
- Pyloroplasty
- Perforation
- Bowel resection
- Lower GI bleeding
- Segmental colectomy/hemicolectomy