S690 Role of Self-Expandable Metal Stents in Variceal Bleeding

Introduction: Esophageal variceal bleeding portends a 6-week mortality of 10-30%. First-line treatment is endoscopic band ligation, but this can be ineffective in 10-20% of cases. Balloon tamponade has historically been used to temporize bleeding in unstable patients but is often associated with complications. Self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) may offer an alternative for tamponade of bleeding varices. A single type of SEMS has been approved...