[Outpatient sclerotherapy of esophageal varices: preliminary results].

We performed endoscopic sclerotherapy of esophageal varices (ESEV) as an outpatient procedure in a private setting in patients with portal hypertension and a least one previous episode of variceal hemorrhage. Twenty-six stable cirrhotic patients (child's class A, 11 patients; class B, 10 patients; class C, 5 patients) underwent 103 outpatient sessions of ESEV. There were two episodes of post-sclerotherapy bleeding (1.9% of total sessions) requiring hospitalisation. Fever (2.9%), dysphagia (6.8%), chest pains (14.6%) and one episode (1%) of respiratory depression due to sedation were also noted, but were managed with simple measures. One of 26 patients developed esophageal stricture. These preliminary results suggest that ESEV can be performed as a relatively safe ambulatory procedure.