Thalidomide Combined With Azathioprine as Induction and Maintenance Therapy for Azathioprine-Refractory Crohn's Disease Patients.

ABSTRACT: The combination therapy of thalidomide and azathioprine (AZA) offers an alternative in clinical practice for Crohn's disease (CD) patients experiencing a loss of response to AZA monotherapy. However, little is known about the efficacy and safety of this combination therapy for patients with CD. This was a retrospective study of 122 consecutive CD patients who lost response to AZA therapy and had switched to a combination therapy of thalidomide and AZA. The primary outcomes were clinical response and clinical remission rates at week 24. Patients who had an initial response to combination therapy were continued on the treatment for remission maintenance. The secondary outcomes were the proportion of clinical relapse throughout maintenance. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate cumula

SUBMITTER: Li T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7677527 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature