Correction: Improved pain relief after thoractomy

liams's letter (10 October, p 987) about the management of gastrointestinal bleeding, and agree entirely with your comment.I would take exception, however, to his last sentence, which implies that an "alcoholic binge" may lead to an upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage and that this does not require investigation.It is our experience that when alcoholic excess leads to a massive bleed there is usually a chronic underlying cause, and I would suggest that these patients most certainly should be investigated.