Preemptive TIPS for Variceal Bleeding in Cirrhotic Patients With Occlusive Portal Vein Thrombosis

Not Applicable

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Portal Vein Thrombosis; Portal Hypertension; Portosystemic Shunt; Esophageal Varix Bleeding
• Interventions: Procedure: standard second prophylaxis; Procedure: preemptive TIPS

• Registration Number: NCT06122753
• Lead Sponsor: West China Hospital

Brief Summary

Portal vein thrombosis (PVT) can lead to a further increase in portal venous pressure and increase the risk of rebleeding. Whether patients with acute esophagogastric variceal bleeding with occlusive PVT benefit from preemptive TIPS is still controversial. The present study is directed at comparing the outcome of patients with acute variceal bleeding with occlusive PVT treated by standard therapy (vasoactive drugs + endoscopic variceal ligation) with or without preemptive TIPS (performed during the first 1-3 days after endoscopic procedure). The primary outcome is survival free of variceal rebleeding at 6 weeks from inclusion.

Detailed Description

Portal vein thrombosis (PVT) is a common complication in patients with cirrhosis, and the cumulative incidence of PVT is 4.6%, 8.2%, and 10.7% at 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years, respectively. PVT can lead to a further increase in portal venous pressure and increase the risk of rebleeding. According to Baveno VII, PVT can be classified according to the degree of occlusion of the portal trunk as complete occlusion (no continuous luminal structure), partial occlusion (≥50% thrombus obstruction of the lumen), mild occlusion (\<50% thrombus obstruction of the lumen), or spongiotic degeneration (a large number of collateral vessels of the portal vein, with no visualization of the main portal vein). The results of a recent observational study suggested that patients with severe PVT with ≥50% thrombotic luminal obstruction had higher 6-week rebleeding rates (8.8% vs. 3.8%) and 1-year rebleeding rates (29.4% vs. 21.4%) after acute variceal bleeding. Our previous clinical study showed that patients with cirrhotic PVT treated with TIPS had lower rebleeding rates and significantly higher rates of portal vein recanalization, and it was inferred that patients with acute esophagogastric variceal bleeding with severe PVT might benefit from preemptive TIPS. Therefore, we propose to conduct a multicentre randomized controlled trial to enroll patients with acute esophagogastric variceal bleeding with occlusive PVT to compare the preemptive TIPS with the standardized therapy. The outcomes are rates of mortality, rebleeding, and complications.

Study Timeline

• Status Verified: 2023-11
• Study First Submitted: 2023-11-03
• Study First Submitted QC: 2023-11-03
• Last Update Submitted: 2023-11-03
• Study First Posted: 2023-11-08
• Last Update Posted: 2023-11-08
• Study Start: 2024-01
• Primary Completion: 2026-12
• Study Completion: 2026-12

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 120

Inclusion Criteria

• Cirrhosis (diagnosed by imaging, laboratory tests, clinical symptoms, or liver biopsy);
• Admission due to acute bleeding from esophagogastric varices;
• Thrombus in the main trunk of the portal vein occupying ≥50% of the lumen.

Exclusion Criteria

• Prior treatment with TIPS or surgical shunt;
• Presence of contraindications to endoscopic treatment, carvedilol, or TIPS;
• Presence of hepatocellular carcinoma exceeding Milan criteria;
• Presence of other systemic malignant tumors with expected survival time not exceeding 6 months;
• Presence of uncontrollable infection or sepsis;
• Presence of cardiac, pulmonary, or renal failure;
• Pregnant or lactating women;
• Refusal to sign the informed consent form.

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Standard Therapy	standard second prophylaxis	Standard treatment to achieve initial hemostasis: vasoactive drugs (somatostatin or terlipressin) + endoscopic hemostasis according to the center protocol. Standard combined endoscopic and pharmacological therapy as secondary prophylaxis (carvedilol + repeated endoscopic variceal ligation until the eradication of the esophageal varices).
Preemptive TIPS	preemptive TIPS	Standard treatment to achieve initial hemostasis: vasoactive drugs (somatostatin or terlipressin) + endoscopic hemostasis according to the center protocol. Performance of TIPS in the first 72 hours following initial endoscopic hemostasis.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
6-week mortality	6 weeks	The rate of mortality during the first 6 weeks after inclusion in the study.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
5-day treatment failure	5 days	Incidence of cases requiring adjustment of treatment strategy within 5 days of initial standardised treatment: vomiting of blood or drainage of ≥100 ml of fresh blood from a gastric tube after 2 hours of treatment, hypovolemic shock, drop in haemoglobin of 30 g/L or more within 24 hours without transfusion.
decompensation events	1 year	Rates with rebleeding, new overt ascites (moderate-heavy) or increased degree of ascites, overt hepatic encephalopathy (West-Heaven grades 2-4), or jaundice (total bilirubin \>51 mmol/L) from 5 days after initial standardised treatment up to 1 year.
adverse events	1 year	Events of various complications such as infections, new tumours, organ failure, peptic ulcers, etc., occurring after randomisation up to the follow-up period.
1-year mortality	1 year	The rate of mortality during the first 1 year after inclusion in the study.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

West China Hospital of Sichuan University; 🇨🇳 Chengdu, Sichuan, China