EDN1 and portal hypertension: Using stepwise multivariate logistic regression analysis, levels of ET-1 were found to be significantly correlated with the severity of portal hypertensive endoscopic findings, especially with regards to variceal cord number (P = .006) and complications following rebleeding, such as the drop in hemoglobin level (P = .002) and degree of renal impairment (P < .001) (Tables 3 and 4).