International Perspectives on Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Opinion Differences and Similarities Between Patients and Physicians From the IBD GAPPS Survey.

Background: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), are complex disorders with multiple comorbidities. We conducted international patient and physician surveys to evaluate current experiences and perceptions of patients with CD or UC and physicians who treat IBD.

Methods: The IBD Global Assessment of Patient and Physician Unmet Need Surveys comprised a patient survey and a physician survey, fielded in North America and Europe between August 16, 2019, and November 10, 2019.

Change in erythrocyte mean corpuscular volume during combination therapy with azathioprine and infliximab is associated with mucosal healing: a post hoc analysis from SONIC.

Background: The adequacy of exposure of purine analogs as measured by 6-thioguanine nucleotides concentrations in the setting of combination therapy remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) value (as a surrogate marker of 6-thioguanine nucleotides concentration) and Crohn's disease outcomes in the setting of combination therapy with infliximab.

Methods: The SONIC trial was a randomized controlled trial comparing infliximab to azathioprine and to infliximab plus azathioprine in 508 Crohn's disease patients.

Optimizing immunomodulators and anti-TNF agents in the therapy of Crohn disease.

Randomized trials support the use of the thiopurines and anti-TNF monoclonal antibodies in treating Crohn disease. New therapeutic approaches and laboratory assays have helped optimize the use of these agents. Thiopurine methyltransferase activity should always be determined to avoid thiopurines in individuals with absent enzyme activity.

Once-daily dosing of delayed-release oral mesalamine (400-mg tablet) is as effective as twice-daily dosing for maintenance of remission of ulcerative colitis.

Background & Aims: The practice of dosing mesalamines in divided doses for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) began with sulfasalazine and was driven by sulfapyridine toxicity. This convention and the assumption that dosing multiple times a day is necessary to treat UC had not been challenged until recently. This study was conducted to determine the efficacy and safety of once-daily dosing of delayed-release mesalamine (Asacol 400-mg tablets) compared with twice-daily dosing for maintaining remission in UC patients.