Background: Upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) is a common emergency gastrointestinal problem which has substantial mortality and health care resources use. The nationwide basic information on UGIB is not available in Thailand.
Objective: To identify the hospitalized incidence, outcomes and hospitalization cost of patients who presented with UGIB in Thailand.
Material and Method: Information on illness of in-patients from hospitals nationwide was retrieved from three major health schemes database in fiscal year 2010.
Results: The hospitalized incidence rate of UGIB was 166.3 admissions per 100,000 populations and the hospitalized incidence rate of non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (NVUGIB) and variceal bleeding were 152.9 and 13.5 admissions per 100,000 populations respectively. Endoscopic procedure was undertaken in 27.6% of NVUGIB admissions and 80.7% of variceal bleeding admissions. The in-hospital mortality rate, hospitalization cost and length of stay were higher in variceal bleeding patients compared with NVUGIB patients.
Conclusion: UGIB is an important emergency gastrointestinal problem which has significant mortality and substantial health care resources consumption.

Keywords: Gastrointestinal hemorrhage, Upper gastrointestinal bleeding, Peptic ulcer bleeding, Variceal bleeding, Health care costs, Epidemiology