One important objective in managing patients with upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage is to control the bleeding until the patient's condition is stable and definitive therapy can be carried out. Endoscopic techniques are now available to attain this goal. Endoscopic sclerosis has become an accepted treatment for bleeding esophageal varices, especially in patients with Child's class B or C cirrhosis. Control of nonvariceal bleeding by endoscopic techniques is now feasible and involves laser photocoagulation and electrocoagulation. Clinical experience with endoscopic laser photocoagulation has demonstrated that it can successfully arrest bleeding in gastric and duodenal ulcers. Endoscopic electrocoagulation has been successful in stopping bleeding from Mallory-Weiss tears, acute gastric erosions, and gastric, duodenal and stomal ulcers. Use of an endoscopic heater probe, now in the development stage, to control bleeding gastric and duodenal ulcers will be an important addition.