Yonsei Med J.  2024 May;65(5):276-282. 10.3349/ymj.2023.0361.

Safety of Biologics and Small Molecules for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases in Organ Transplant Recipients

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Gastroenterology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
  • 2Digestive Diseases Research Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
  • 3Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract

Purpose
This study aimed to evaluate the safety of biologics and small molecules for the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in patients receiving antirejection therapies after organ transplants.
Materials and Methods
We reviewed the medical records of patients with IBD who received organ transplants at the Asan Medical Center between January 1989 and December 2021. We compared the parameters of patients receiving biologics or small molecules to those of patients without those therapies.
Results
This study included a total of 53 patients (ulcerative colitis, 41; Crohn’s disease, 6; and gastrointestinal Behçet’s disease, 6). Among them, 15 patients were receiving biologics or small molecules and 38 were not. During a mean follow-up of 119 months, the proportion of patients experiencing severe infections was significantly higher in those treated with biologics or small molecules than in those not treated. However, other safety outcomes (e.g., malignancies, adverse events, including organizing pneumonia or hepatic failure, and death) were not different between the two groups. Kaplan–Meier curve analysis revealed no significant difference in the safety outcome rate related to the use of biologics or small molecules. During follow-up, eight patients underwent bowel resections for IBD. The rate of bowel resection was not different between the two groups.
Conclusion
The use of biologics or small molecules for patients with IBD who received organ transplants did not show a significant difference in safety outcomes. However, the possibility of severe infections must be considered.

Keyword

Inflammatory bowel disease; organ transplantation; biologics
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