Experiences with the Linton-Nachlas and the Sengstaken-Blakemore tubes for bleeding esophageal varices.

A controlled clinical trial was begun to compare the effectiveness of the Sengstaken-Blakemore tube with that of the Linton-Nachlas tube in the emergency treatment of bleeding esophageal varices. The investigation was prematurely terminated after two lethal complications with the Linton-Nachlas tube. At that time, 28 patients with 42 bleeding episodes were included. Twenty-seven were treated with the Sengstaken-Blakemore tube, with bleeding being controlled in 20; 15 were treated with the Linton-Nachlas tube, with bleeding being controlled in six. No significant statistical difference was found between the two tubes, 0.05 less than p less than 0.1, but the results encourage the use of Sengstaken-Blakemore tube in preference to the Linton-Nachlas tube, except in patients with a hiatal hernia or bleeding from fundic varices.