CORRELATION BETWEEN THE SIZE OF OESOPHAGEAL VARICES AND THE APRI SCORE

Aims The objective of our study is to show the correlation between the size of oesophageal varices (OV) and the APRI score

Methods This is a retrospective analytical study extended between January 2014 and July 2019, including all patients with liver disease who have been admitted for esophageal varices screening or hemorrhagic decompensation. We excluded patients under ligation protocol. The correlation study between esophageal varices size and APRI score was performed according to the binary regression

Results During the study period, we collected 235 patients. The average age was 50.17 ± 17.7 years. The sex ratio (F/H) was 1.04. More than half of our patients were known and followed for cirrhosis: 48% were carriers of viral hepatitis B/C. Endoscopy was performed for esophageal varices screening in 57.4% and urgently for hemorrhagic decompensation in 42.6%. The average of APRI score was 1.72 [0.08; 11,79]. It was less than 0.5 in 42.6% and superior to 1.5 in 23%. Oesophageal varices were present in 65.5% of whom 12% were stage III. The average of APRI score in this population was 2.08 [0.28; 9.45]. We found a positive correlation between oesophageal varices size and APRI score (r = + 0.43 p < 0.01)

Conclusions There is a positive correlation between the size of oesophageal varices and the APRI score: the higher the APRI score, the more the oesophageal varices size increases