Azathioprine or 6-mercaptopurine for induction of remission in Crohn's disease

Helminth therapy (worms) for induction of remission in inflammatory bowel disease

BACKGROUND

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic, globally-occurring gastrointestinal disorder and a major cause of illness and disability. It is conventionally classified into Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Helminths are parasitic worms with complex life cycles involving tissue- or lumen-dwelling stages in their hosts, and causing long-lasting or chronic infections that are frequently asymptomatic. Helminths modulate immune responses of their hosts, and many observational and experimental studies support the hypothesis that helminths suppress immune-mediated chronic inflammation that occurs in asthma, allergy and IBD.

OBJECTIVES

The objective was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of helminth treatment for induction of remission in IBD.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the following databases from inception to 13 July 2013: MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the Cochrane Inflammatory Bowel Disease Group Specialized Trials Register. We also searched four online trials registries, and abstracts from major meetings. There were no language restrictions.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) where the intervention was any helminth species or combination of helminth species, administered in any dose and by any route and for any duration of exposure to people with active CD or UC, confirmed through any combination of clinical, endoscopic and histological criteria were eligible for inclusion.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two authors independently extracted data and assessed eligibility using a standardized data collection form. We used the RevMan software for analyses. The primary outcome was induction of remission as defined by the included studies. Secondary outcomes included clinical, histologic, or endoscopic improvement as defined by the authors, endoscopic mucosal healing, change in disease activity index score, change in quality of life score, hospital admissions, requirement for intravenous corticosteroids, surgery, study withdrawal and the incidence of adverse events. We calculated the risk ratio (RR) and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) for dichotomous outcomes. We calculated the mean difference (MD) and 95% CI for continuous outcomes. We assessed the methodological quality of included studies using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. The overall quality of the evidence supporting each outcome was assessed using the GRADE criteria.

MAIN RESULTS

Two RCTs (90 participants) were included. One trial assessed the efficacy and safety of Trichuris suis (T. suis) ova in patients with UC (n = 54). The other RCT was a phase one that assessed the safety and tolerability of T. suis ova in patients with CD (n = 36). The risk of bias in both studies was judged to be low. In the UC study, during the 12-week study period, participants in the active arm received 2-weekly aliquots of 2500 T. suis eggs, added to 0.8 mL of saline; those in the placebo arm received 0.8 mL saline only. There were sparse data available for the outcomes clinical remission and clinical improvement. Ten per cent (3/30) of patients in the T. suis arm entered remission compared to 4% (1/24) of patients in the placebo arm (RR 2.40, 95% CI 0.27 to 21.63). Forty-three per cent (13/30) of patients in the T. suis group achieved clinical improvement compared to 17% (4/24) of placebo patients (RR 2.60, 95% CI 0.97 to 6.95). The mean ulcerative colitis disease activity index (UCDAI) score was lower in the T. suis group (6.1 +/- 0.61) compared to the placebo group (7.5 +/- 0.66) after 12 weeks of treatment (MD -1.40, 95% CI -1.75 to -1.05). There was only limited evidence relating to the proportion of patients who experienced an adverse event. Three per cent (1/30) of patients in the T. suis group experienced at least one adverse event compared to 12% (3/24) of placebo patients (RR 0.27, 95% CI 0.03 to 2.40). None of the adverse events reported in this study were judged to be related to the study treatment. GRADE analyses rated the overall quality of the evidence for the primary and secondary outcomes (i.e. clinical remission and improvement) as low due to serious imprecision. In the CD study, participants received a single treatment of T. suis ova at a dosage of 500 (n = 9), 2500 (n = 9), or 7500 (n = 9) embryonated eggs or matching placebo (n = 9). The CD study did not assess clinical remission or improvement as outcomes. There were sparse data on adverse events at two weeks. Thirty-seven per cent (10/27) of patients in the T. suis group experienced at least one adverse event compared to 44% (4/9) of placebo patients (RR 0.83, 95% CI 0.35 to 2.01). Only one adverse event (dysgeusia) was judged to be possibly related to treatment in this study. Dysgeusia was reported in one patient in the T. suis group and in one patient in the placebo group.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Currently, there is insufficient evidence to allow any firm conclusions regarding the efficacy and safety of helminths used to treat patients with IBD. The evidence for our primary efficacy outcomes in this review comes from one small study and is of low quality due to serious imprecision. We do not have enough evidence to determine whether helminths are safe when used in patients with UC and CD. Further RCTs are required to assess the efficacy and safety of helminth therapy in IBD.

Use of thiopurines and risk of colorectal neoplasia in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases: a meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is commonly treated with thiopurines such as azathioprine and mercaptopurine for the maintenance of remission. Studies examining chemopreventive of these medications on colorectal neoplasm in IBD patients have yielded conflicting results. We performed a meta-analysis to assess the role of thiopurines for this indication.

METHODS

We performed a systematic search of PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE and Cochrane to identify studies reporting colorectal neoplasm from IBD patients treated with thiopurines and conducted a meta-analysis of pooled relative risk (RR) using the random effects model.

RESULTS

Nine case-control and ten cohort studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The use of thiopurines was associated with a statistically significant decreased incidence of colorectal neoplasm (summary RR=0.71, 95% CI=0.54-0.94, p=0.017), even after adjustment for duration and extent of the disease, but there was high heterogeneity among studies (I(2)=68.0%, p<0.001). The RR of advanced neoplasm (high-grade dysplasia and cancer) was 0.72 (95%CI=0.50-1.03, p=0.070) and that of cancer was 0.70 (95% CI=0.46-1.09, p=0.111) for thiopurine-treated patients. Heterogeneity of the studies was affected by the sample size (

CONCLUSION

The current meta-analysis revealed that thiopurines had a chemopreventive effect of colorectal neoplasms and a tendency of reducing advanced colorectal neoplasms in IBD. Due to the heterogeneity of included studies, these results should be interpreted with caution.

Collapse

Key Words Collapse

MESH Headings

• Azathioprine/adverse effects
• Azathioprine/therapeutic use
• Colorectal Neoplasms/chemically induced
• Humans
• Inflammatory Bowel Diseases/drug therapy
• Mercaptopurine/adverse effects
• Mercaptopurine/therapeutic use
• Risk

Collapse

Grants Collapse

Affiliation(s)

Jianfeng Gong Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Lijing Zhu Department of Oncology, Drum Tower hospital, Medical school of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Zhen Guo Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Yi Li Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Weiming Zhu Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Ning Li Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China
Jieshou Li Department of General Surgery, Jinling hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, PR China

Collapse

Leukocyte-epithelial interactions and mucosal homeostasis

Many common inflammatory disorders are characterized by the infiltration of neutrophils across epithelial lined (mucosal) surfaces resulting in disruption of critical barrier function that protects from microbes and noxious agents. In such conditions, disease symptoms are complex but directly related to leukocyte effects on the barrier and epithelial cell function. It is now highly regarded that cellular factors such as cytokines and receptor-ligand interactions mediating adhesion of leukocytes to epithelial cells have potent effects on epithelial homeostasis, defined by coordinated proliferation, migration, differentiation, and regulated cell shedding. Certain cytokines, for example, not only alter leukocyte interactions with epithelia through changes in expression of adhesion molecules but also affect barrier function through alterations in the composition and dynamics of intercellular junctions. In particular, inflammation-induced loss of many tight junction molecules, in part, can account for dysregulated cellular proliferation, migration, survival, and barrier function. This review will highlight how neutrophils interact with epithelial cells with particular focus on adhesion molecules involved and signaling events that play roles in regulating mucosal homeostasis and pathobiology. A better understanding of these molecular events may provide new ideas for therapeutics directed at attenuating consequences of pathologic inflammation of mucosal surfaces.

Adverse events associated with azathioprine treatment in korean pediatric inflammatory bowel disease patients

PURPOSE

This study was aimed to evaluate the frequency and course of adverse events associated with azathioprine treatment in Korean pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

METHODS

Total of 174 pediatric patients (age range, 1 to 19 years) with inflammatory bowel disease who received azathioprine in order to maintain remission at Samsung Medical Center (Seoul, Korea) from January 2002 through December 2012 were included in this study. Medical records of these subjects were retrospectively reviewed regarding the development of adverse events associated with azathioprine treatment.

RESULTS

Ninety-eight patients (56.3%) of 174 patients experienced 136 episodes of adverse events, requiring dose reduction in 31 patients (17.8%), and discontinuation in 18 patients (10.3%). The mean dose of azathioprine that had been initially administered was 1.32±0.42 mg/kg/day. Among the adverse reactions, bone marrow suppression developed in 47 patients (27.0%), requiring dose reduction in 22 patients (12.6%) and discontinuation in 8 patients (4.6%). Other adverse events that occurred were gastrointestinal disturbance (15.5%), hair loss (12.1%), pancreatitis (7.5%), arthralgia (6.9%), hepatotoxicity (2.9%), skin rash/allergic reactions (2.9%), headache/dizziness (2.3%), sepsis (0.6%), and oral mucositis (0.6%).

CONCLUSION

Bone marrow suppression, especially leukopenia was most commonly associated with azathioprine treatment in Korean pediatric inflammatory bowel disease patients. Close observation for possible adverse events is required in this population with inflammatory bowel diseases who are under treatment with azathioprine.

Risk of lymphoma after treatment of inflammatory bowel disease with azathioprine

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic, non-specific inflammatory disease of the intestine, characterized by excessive activation of the immune system. Immunosuppressive therapy has been widely and effectively used in IBD patients. However, the occurrence of lymphoma after immunosuppressive therapy for IBD, especially azathioprine, has been recently reported. This article reviews the clinical application of azathioprine in IBD, the possible mechanisms responsible for lymphoma induction by azathioprine, and the assessment of benefit and risk of immunosuppressive therapy for IBD.