A new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine reveals that infliximab, thought to reduce complications of inflammatory bowel and bowel disease (IBD), does not work as expected.
Also called remicade, infliximab is a treatment called “anti TNF”, it is a biomedicine which aims to block inflammation. It has been prescribed since 1995 to limit the rate of hospitalizations (and worsening of the condition in general) of Crohn’s patients and ulcerative colitis.
These two diseases of digestion and transit are caused by inflammation of the intestine. Their manifestations are mainly diarrhoea, great fatigue, weight loss… Side effects that are particularly disabling in everyday life.
Insufficient results
Between 1995 and 2012, the effects of the drug were studied on Canadians. Results ? Disappointingly, only patients with ulcerative colitis saw slight improvement, while clinical trials were very promising.
Dr. Sanjay Murthy, an IBD specialist in Ottawa, who carried out the study, deplores a rate of reduction in side effects that is too low. He specifies “This suggests that we might need to improve the way we use this drug to get better results.“
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