Abstract: Objective To investigate the etiology and endoscopic features of esophageal varices （EV）. Methods 295 patients with EV were hospitalized in Digestive Endoscopy Center，Xinjiang Autonomous Region People's Hospital between January 2014 and June 2016， and their clinical data and endoscopic manifestations were retrospectively analyzed. Results Among the 295 cases with EV，there were 258 cases（87.46%） resulting from liver cirrhosis，and the main etiologies were hepatitis B virus infection in 94 cases（31.86%），cryptogenic liver cirrhosis in 58 cases（19.66%），hepatitis C virus infection in 37 cases（12.54%），primary biliary cirrhosis in 23 cases （7.80%），and non-cirrhotic related etiologies in 37 cases （12.54%）；Under endoscope，mild esophageal varices were found in 61 cases，moderate in 68 cases and severe in 166 cases；Severe EV was often demonstrated by red sign（89.8%） and significantly increased the incidences of gastric varices and portal hypertensive gastropathy；The degree of esophageal varices was correlated to gastric varices，portal hypertensive gastropathy and peptic ulcer（r=0.310，r=0.174 and r=-0.173，respectively，P<0.05）. Conclusion The major cause of portal hypertensive esophageal varices is still liver cirrhosis，and the main etiologies are hepatitis B virus-related and cryptogenic liver cirrhosis. However，non-cirrhotic etiologies also account for an important proportion. With the aggravation of esophagus varices，the incidence of gastric varices and portal hypertensive gastropathy increase，and they must be taken into consideration in clinical practice.

Key words: Liver cirrhosis, Esophageal varices, Etiology, Endoscopy