Acute esophageal variceal bleeding (AEVB) is a serious complication of liver cirrhosis and is leading cause in hepatic failure and death. Endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL) is the mainstream treatment mode for management of esophageal varices. The aim of the study was to investigate survival rate in urgent - elective (secondary AEVB prophylaxis) and elective (primary AEVB prophylaxis) groups. This article intends to investigate regimens and long-term outcomes of primary or secondary prophylaxis of AEVB in 161 cirrhotic patients. A new risk factor for cirrhosis decompensation stratification is proposed. It is based on a number of necessary EVL bands to achieve sustained (at least 12 months) varix elimination. This study showed that survival rate was strongly inversely dependent on this newly proposed varix elimination index.