Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding: Risk Stratification, Endoscopic Haemostasis, and Pharmacological Management

This chapter provides a systematic review of the assessment and management of acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding, encompassing haemorrhage secondary to peptic ulcer disease, oesophagogastric varices, and less common aetiologies. It evaluates validated risk stratification tools, examines current evidence supporting early endoscopic intervention and haemostatic techniques — including adrenaline injection, thermal coagulation, haemostatic clips, and topical haemostatic agents — and reviews the pharmacological management of variceal and non-variceal bleeding, including the optimisation of proton pump inhibitor therapy and the role of vasoactive agents, antibiotics, and transfusion strategies.