Safety Profile of Thiopurines in Crohn Disease: Analysis of 893 Patient-Years Follow-Up in a Southern China Cohort

Medicine (Baltimore). 2015 Oct;94(41):e1513. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001513.

Abstract

Thiopurines have been associated with both clinical improvement and mucosal healing in treating Crohn disease (CD). Unfortunately, the high rate of adverse events (AEs) leading to drug withdrawal represents a major limitation in the use of these drugs.To evaluate the safety of thiopurines in patients with CD. To identify predictive factors associated with the development of thiopurine-induced AEs and withdrawal.This longitudinal cohort study examined patients from a university-based IBD referral center. Time-to-event analysis was performed with the Kaplan-Meier curve. Cox regression analysis was performed to identify potential predictive factors of AEs.Two hundred sixty-seven CD patients on thiopurines were included. A total of 143 AEs occurred at a median of 7.4 months (interquartile range, 3.7-15.3 months) after starting treatment. The cumulative incidence of AEs was 26%, with an annual risk of 4.3% per patient-year of treatment. The most frequent was leucopenia (41/267, 15.36%), followed by infections (29/267, 10.86%). Independent factors predictive of leucopenia were lower baseline hemoglobin (hazard ratio (HR), 0.34; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.18-0.67) and the concomitant use of 5-aminosalicylic acid (HR, 3.05; 95% CI 1.44-8.76). Of the 28.44% (76/267) CD patients discontinued therapy, 14.61% due to AEs. A lower body mass index, the presence of extraintestinal manifestation, and the incidence of leucopenia independently predicted thiopurine withdrawal. In total, 37.5% of these patients restarted thiopurines and 52.3% of them had AEs again.About a quarter of patients on thiopurine therapy had AEs during follow-up and 1 of 7 patients had to discontinue thiopurines due to AEs.

Publication types

  • Observational Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Azathioprine / adverse effects*
  • Azathioprine / therapeutic use
  • Body Mass Index
  • China
  • Crohn Disease / drug therapy*
  • Drug Therapy, Combination
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Immunosuppressive Agents / adverse effects*
  • Immunosuppressive Agents / therapeutic use
  • Kaplan-Meier Estimate
  • Male
  • Mercaptopurine / adverse effects*
  • Mercaptopurine / therapeutic use
  • Prospective Studies
  • Regression Analysis
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Socioeconomic Factors

Substances

  • Immunosuppressive Agents
  • Mercaptopurine
  • Azathioprine