Intravenous albumin shortens the duration of hospitalization for patients with hypoalbuminemia and bleeding peptic ulcers: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND

Patients with hypoalbuminemia have an increased risk of ulcer rebleeding and longer length of hospitalization.

AIMS

This study aimed to test whether intravenous albumin can decrease the incidence of rebleeding or shorten the duration of hospitalization in patients with bleeding peptic ulcers and hypoalbuminemia.

METHODS

Sixty-two patients with bleeding peptic ulcers and Rockall scores ≥ 6 were prospectively enrolled after having received endoscopic therapy. The enrolled patients were divided into a normal albumin group (serum albumin ≥ 3 g/dL, n = 39) or an intervention group (<3 g/dL, n = 23) to receive a 3-day course of omeprazole infusion and 25-day oral esomeprazole. Patients (n = 29) with bleeding ulcers and hypoalbuminemia who received the same dose of intravenous and oral omeprazole but did not receive albumin therapy were enrolled from a previous study as the control group. In the intervention group, patients received albumin infusion (10 g q8h) for 1 day (serum albumin levels 2.5-2.9 g/dL) and 2 days (<2.5 g/dL), respectively.

RESULTS

The 28-day cumulative rebleeding rates were similar between the intervention group and the control group (39.1 vs. 42.3 %, p = 0.99). The intervention group had a shorter duration of hospitalization (9 vs. 15 days, p = 0.02) than cohort controls. The risk of rebleeding developed after discharge were similar (normal albumin group vs. intervention group vs. control group, 1/5 [20 %] vs. 2/9 [22.2 %] vs. 1/11 [9.1 %], p = 0.7).

CONCLUSIONS

Albumin administration shortens the duration of hospitalization for patients with peptic ulcer bleeding and hypoalbuminemia, but does not decrease the incidence of rebleeding.