The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 News
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Psoriatic Arthritis Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
    • Interprofessional Perspective
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Anti-TNFs in Early Puberty May Improve Growth in Pediatric IBD

Anti-TNFs in Early Puberty May Improve Growth in Pediatric IBD

October 4, 2016 • By Reuters Staff

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Anti-TNF drugs are more likely to improve growth in children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) if they’re given in the earlier stages of puberty, new findings show.¹

You Might Also Like
  • Skin Complications of Anti-TNF Therapy Common in IBD
  • Infliximab Use Not Tied to Malignancy in Pediatric IBD
  • Biosimilar Infliximab Appears Safe, Effective in Pediatric IBD

Children who achieve remission are also more likely to have satisfactory growth, the research team reported online on Sept. 21 in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition.

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Pediatric IBD, especially Crohn’s disease, can stunt growth, but some studies have found infliximab and adalimumab to be associated with better short term growth, Dr. Fiona Cameron of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and colleagues write in their report.

To better understand the effects of infliximab and adalimumab on growth in pediatric IBD, the researchers looked at 195 youngsters who started biological therapy in Scotland from 2000 to 2012. Eighty-five percent had Crohn’s disease, 14% had ulcerative colitis, and 1% had unclassified IBD. The median age at diagnosis was 11 years.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

The children received a total of 240 courses of therapy.

Growth data from 12 months before biologic therapy initiation to 12 months after were available for 93 of the 191 patients on infliximab, and 28 of 49 patients on adalimumab.

Eighteen percent of the patients on infliximab had severe growth failure at the study’s outset. The patients on infliximab who achieved remission showed significant improvement in median height standard deviation score (HtSDS), change in HtSDS, and height velocity (HV).

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Patients in Tanner stages 1–3 had an increase in change in HtSDS and HV, while patients in stages 4 or 5 had no significant change in HtSDS and a decrease in HV.

Growth was better in patients who received infliximab for at least 12 months compared to those who were on the drug for a shorter period. Male patients showed greater improvements in growth than females. Patients who had IBD for longer than two years and those who received azathioprine along with infliximab also had improved linear growth.

Patients treated with adalimumab also had increased height only at 12 months. Early stages of puberty (Tanner stage 2 and 3) were associated with increased change in HtSDS and HV—but no improvement was seen in those who were not on corticosteroids at baseline.

“Growth improves with greater disease control as can be seen in our results, where no improvement in growth was observed in those who did not achieve remission after induction,” Dr. Cameron and her team write. “In those that achieved remission post-induction, improvement was seen in all measures of growth suggesting that these patients may demonstrate catch-up growth now that the inflammatory process has been ‘switched off’ rather than the anti-TNF therapy agents themselves.”

Pages: 1 2 | Single Page

Filed Under: Conditions, Drug Updates, Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes Tagged With: adalimumab, anti-TNF agent, Crohn's disease, inflammatory bowel disease, infliximab, Pediatric, ulcerative colitis

You Might Also Like:
  • Skin Complications of Anti-TNF Therapy Common in IBD
  • Infliximab Use Not Tied to Malignancy in Pediatric IBD
  • Biosimilar Infliximab Appears Safe, Effective in Pediatric IBD
  • Treating IBD with Anti-TNF Tied to Higher Risk of Demyelinating Disease

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

Meeting Abstracts

Browse and search abstracts from the ACR Convergence and ACR/ARP Annual Meetings going back to 2012.

Visit the Abstracts site »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2022 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)