We conducted a prospective, multicenter, randomized trial to compare the efficacy of sclerotherapy plus propranolol with that of propranolol alone in the prevention of recurrent gastroesophageal bleeding in severely cirrhotic patients. For 2 yr (1987 to 1988) 131 patients (96% of whom were alcoholic) with Child-Pugh class B or C cirrhosis (56% were class B and 44% were class C) were randomly assigned to one of our two treatment groups after cessation of variceal bleeding, without hemostatic sclerosis, and were observed for at least 2 yr. Treatment observance was good in 89% of cases; alcohol withdrawal was observed in 62% of cases. Sclerotherapy was performed weekly with 1% polidocanol, and variceal obliteration was obtained in 83% of cases, in a mean number of four sessions. The cumulative percentages (expressed as mean +/- S.D.) of recurrent bleeding at 2 yr were 42% +/- 6% for propranolol plus sclerotherapy and 59% +/- 6% for propranolol alone (a nonsignificant difference). Twenty-eight patients from the propranolol group but only 12 patients from the propranolol-plus-sclerotherapy group had recurrent bleeding from esophageal variceal rupture (p less than 0.01). The total number of blood units per patient with recurrent bleeding was slightly but not significantly more important in the propranolol group (8 +/- 7) than in the propranolol-plus-sclerotherapy group (5 +/- 5; p = 0.09).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)