AzTrials
AzTrials

Gastroesophageal VaricesNCT02672319

EUS-guided Glue Injection for Varices Study

A study testing EUS-guided glue injection in people with Gastroesophageal Varices, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

Bleeding from gastroesophageal varices is one of the major complications of cirrhosis. After successful treatment of the acute bleeding episode, patients who do not receive follow-up treatment to prevent rebleeding were reported to have a rebleeding rate of 60% within 1- 2 years. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 85 years
Conditions the study is for
Gastroesophageal Varices
What is being tested?
EUS-guided glue injection
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
30 participants
Where
1 siteHong Kong
Study dates
Apr 2014to 30 Jun 2020
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 85 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Consecutive patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer), and/or portal vein thrombosis, who have presented with gastroesophageal variceal bleeding within 12 weeks
  • Age > 18 years
  • Written informed consent available

Who cannot join

  • Contraindications for endoscopy due to comorbidities
  • Unable to provide written informed consent
  • Refractory coagulopathy (INR>1.5) or refractory thrombocytopenia (platelets <50,000) despite blood product transfusion
  • Pregnant patients
  • Moribund patients from terminal illnesses

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Hong Kong1 site
  • The Chinese University of Hong Kong

    Hong Kong

Other trials in Hong Kong

About this study

Official title: Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS) Guided Cyanoacrylate Injection for Variceal Obturation as Secondary Prophylaxis for Patients at High Risk for Recurrent Gastroesophageal Variceal Bleeding

Bleeding from gastroesophageal varices is one of the major complications of cirrhosis. After successful treatment of the acute bleeding episode, patients who do not receive follow-up treatment to prevent rebleeding were reported to have a rebleeding rate of 60% within 1- 2 years. The presence of liver cancer and/or portal vein thrombosis has been associated with recurrent variceal bleeding. In a study of liver cancer patients in Hong Kong, 7.9% of patients developed at least 1 episode of variceal bleeding over the course of liver cancer.

In patients with portal hypertension from cirrhosis, current guidelines recommend non-selective beta-blocker, endoscopic band ligation for esophageal varices after initial bleeding, and either cyanoacrylate injection for variceal obturation or transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt for gastric varices after initial bleeding. However, it is unclear whether the above strategies will have the same clinical effect for patients with liver cancer and/or portal vein thrombosis who are at high risk for recurrent bleeding.

Read more

Recently, the technique of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) guided cyanoacrylate (glue) injection for variceal obturation has been described. In a study of patients with gastric variceal bleeding, EUS guided glue injection and coiling was reported to achieve hemostasis in all patients and 96% of the gastric varices remained obliterated during the follow-up period. To date, there has been no dedicated study to evaluate the role of EUS guided glue injection for prevention of future bleeding in patients at high risk for recurrent variceal bleeding such as those with liver cancer or portal vein thrombosis.

The investigators propose this study to evaluate the feasibility and safety of EUS guided glue injection for follow-up variceal treatment in patients at high risk for recurrent variceal bleeding, such as those with liver cancer and/or portal vein thrombosis.

Read the detailed description

Gastroesophageal variceal bleeding is one of the major complications of cirrhosis and occurs at a rate of 5 to 15% per year. 50% of patients with cirrhosis develop variceal bleeding during their lifetime. Large varix size, presence of red wale signs on endoscopy, and decompensated cirrhosis are predictors of variceal hemorrhage. Current first-line management of acute variceal bleeding includes a combination of vasoactive drug, endoscopic therapy and antibiotic prophylaxis. Despite advances in the management of acute variceal bleeding, the 6-week mortality remains significant at 15 - 20% per episode of variceal bleeding.

In patients who survive the acute variceal bleeding episode but without secondary prophylaxis, the median rebleeding rate is about 60% within 1- 2 years of the index bleeding with a mortality of 33%. The presence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and/or portal vein thrombosis (PVT) have been associated with recurrent variceal bleeding and worse outcome. In a retrospective study of 2928 HCC patients in Hong Kong, 7.9% of the patients developed at least 1 episode of variceal bleeding over the course of HCC. In cirrhotic patients with PVT but without HCC, variceal bleeding is not an uncommon complication.

In patients with portal hypertension from cirrhosis, current guidelines recommend non-selective beta-blocker, endoscopic band ligation for esophageal varices after initial bleeding, and either cyanoacrylate injection for variceal obturation or transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt for gastric varices after initial bleeding. However, it is unclear whether the above strategies will have the same clinical effect for patients with liver cancer and/or portal vein thrombosis who are at high risk for recurrent bleeding.

Recently, the technique of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) guided cyanoacrylate (glue) injection for variceal obturation has been described. In a study of patients with gastric variceal bleeding, EUS guided glue injection and coiling was reported to achieve hemostasis in all patients and 96% of the gastric varices remained obliterated during the follow-up period. To date, there has been no dedicated study to evaluate the role of EUS guided glue injection for prevention of future bleeding in patients at high risk for recurrent variceal bleeding such as those with liver cancer or portal vein thrombosis.

The investigators propose this study to evaluate the feasibility and safety of EUS guided glue injection for follow-up variceal treatment in patients at high risk for recurrent variceal bleeding, such as those with liver cancer and/or portal vein thrombosis.

Being tested
EUS-guided glue injection

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • EUS-guided glue injectionProcedure or surgery

    Experimental: EUS-guided glue injection Gastroesophageal varices > 3mm in diameter will be treated with EUS guided cyanoacrylate injection for variceal obturation in standard fashion. A conventional 19G needle (19G-Echotip needle, Cook Medical, USA) will be advanced into the target varix under real-time EUS guidance. Cyanoacrylate injection (Histoacryl, B. Braun Surgical, Germany) will be performed according to established protocol. Each aliquot of cyanoacrylate injection will consist of 0.5ml of Histoacryl + 0.7ml of lipiodol. 1 - 3 aliquots of cyanoacrylate injection may be given depending on the number of varices needed to be treated. EUS with colour Doppler will be used to monitor obliteration of blood flow in varices during and after cyanoacrylate injection.

Study groups in NCT02672319
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
EUS-guided glue injectionExperimentalGastroesophageal varices > 3mm in diameter will be treated with EUS guided cyanoacrylate injection for variceal obturation in standard fashion. A conventional 19G needle (19G-Echotip needle, Cook Medical, USA) will be advanced into the target varix under real-time EUS guidance. Cyanoacrylate injection (Histoacryl, B. Braun Surgical, Germany) will be performed according to established protocol. Each aliquot of cyanoacrylate injection will consist of 0.5ml of Histoacryl + 0.7ml of lipiodol. 1 - 3 aliquots of cyanoacrylate injection may be given depending on the number of varices needed to be treated. EUS with colour Doppler will be used to monitor obliteration of blood flow in varices during and after cyanoacrylate injection.
Receives: Procedure: EUS-guided glue injection
Historical controlNo interventionA historical control group of HCC patients with gastroesophageal variceal bleeding who underwent conventional cyanoacrylate injection by OGD for index variceal bleeding based on de-identified data from an existing prospective GI bleed database from 2009-2013 would also be included to allow a more meaningful interpretation of the rebleeding rate from gastroesophageal varices from this study.

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Rebleeding rate

    Number of participants who undergo EUS guided glue injection and develop rebleeding during the 3-month and 6-month follow up period

    Measured: 6 months

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. bleeding free interval after index procedure

    Duration without bleeding from varices

    Measured: 12 months

  2. Technical success

    Technical success = successful delivery of glue injection under EUS guidance

    Measured: At time of procedure

  3. procedural complication

    Procedure related complication such as perforation, bleeding, infection, cardiopulmonary adverse events

    Measured: 12 months

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted3 Feb 2016 (estimated)
  2. Study startApr 2014
  3. Primary completion30 Jun 2020
  4. Study completion30 Jun 2020

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Non-randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Model description
Comparison of clinical outcomes of a prospective study cohort to those in a historical control group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
30 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT02672319
Sponsor's protocol ID
EUS Glue Study
Status last verified
Oct 2020
First submitted
9 Sep 2015
Last updated
27 Oct 2020
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
Individual data sharing
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing EUS-guided glue injection in people with Gastroesophageal Varices, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 27 Oct 2020. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Hong Kong. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Rebleeding rate (time frame: 6 months). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 27 Oct 2020; AzTrials last refreshed its copy on 27 Oct 2026.

Free account

Keep searching with a free account

You’ve used your 3 free searches for this session. Log in or create a free AzTrials account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in