Abstract: Objective The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical efficacy of carvedilol and propranolol in preventing esophagogastric varices bleeding (EVB) in patients with liver cirrhosis. Methods 312 cirrhotics eligible for inclusion were encountered in our hospital between April 2013 and September 2020, and out of them, carvedilol were given in 190 cases and propranolol were given in 122 cases. All patients were followed-up until December 2020. The wedged hepatic venous pressure (WHVP) and free hepatic venous pressure (FHVP) were routinely determined and the hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) was calculated. Results During the follow-up period, the incidence of EVB in propranolol-treated patients was 34.4%, significantly higher than 13.2%(P＜0.05) in carvedilol-treated patients; the fatality rates in the two groups were 5.7% and 1.6%(P＞0.05); after treatment, the WHVP, FHVP and HVPG in 66 propranolol-treated patients were (22.7±5.1)mmHg, 9.0(6.0-11.0)mmHg and (13.7±3.5)mmHg, not significantly different compared to[(22.5±4.5)mmHg, 8.0(6.0~10.0) mmHg and (14.5±3.8)mmHg] in 32 carvedilol-treated patients (P>0.05). Conclusion The efficacy of carvedilol in preventing EVB in patients with liver cirrhosis and esophagogastric varices is superior to propranolol, although there is no significant difference as respect to the reduction of HVPG by the two medicines.

Key words: Liver cirrhosis, Esophagogastric varices, Carvedilol, Propranolol, Hepatic venous pressure gradient, Therapy