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Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage

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Principles of Adult Surgical Critical Care

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Abstract

There are over half a million patients hospitalized annually for gastrointestinal hemorrhage (GIH) in the USA [1]. The overall inpatient mortality rate in the USA is approximately 3 %. The majority of bleeds (~75 %) arise from the upper gastrointestinal tract, defined as proximal to the ligament of Treitz. GIH is most common in the elderly, and this population is prone to having a higher incidence of associated medical comorbidities. In the GIH patient population, 80 % of the mortality is attributable to their associated comorbidities rather than as a direct consequence of their GI hemorrhage. As the elderly population of America continues to expand, it can be expected that the incidence of GI hemorrhage patients will also increase in a proportionate fashion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Trauma/Surgical Critical Care, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA

    Michael A. Samotowka MD, FCCM

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  1. Michael A. Samotowka MD, FCCM
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Correspondence to Michael A. Samotowka MD, FCCM .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Trauma, Surgical Critical Care, Emergency Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Niels D. Martin

  2. Trauma, Surgical Critical Care, Emergency Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Lewis J. Kaplan

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Samotowka, M.A. (2016). Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage. In: Martin, N.D., Kaplan, L.J. (eds) Principles of Adult Surgical Critical Care. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33341-0_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33341-0_16

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