Biologics Tied to Opportunistic Infection Risk in IBD

No increased risk of serious infection or malignancy among adults with inflammatory bowel disease
digestive system
digestive system

TUESDAY, Oct. 4, 2016 (HealthDay News) -- For adults with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), biologic agents increase the risk of infection, especially opportunistic infection, but do not increase the risk of serious infection or malignancy, according to a review published in the October issue of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

Stefanos Bonovas, M.D., Ph.D., from Humanitas Clinical and Research Center in Milan, and colleagues performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine whether biologic agents impact the risk of infection or malignancy in adults with IBD. Data were included from 49 randomized placebo-controlled studies with 14,590 participants.

The researchers found that patients treated with biologics had a moderate increase in the risk of any infection (odds ratio (OR), 1.19; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.10 to 1.29) and a significant increase in the risk of opportunistic infections (OR, 1.90; 95 percent CI, 1.21 to 3.01); there was no increase in the risk of serious infections (OR, 0.89; 95 percent CI, 0.71 to 1.12). In studies with low risk of bias, biologics seemed to reduce the risk of serious infection (OR, 0.56; 95 percent CI, 0.35 to 0.90). Biologic agent use was not associated with increased risk of malignancy (OR, 0.90; 95 percent CI, 0.54 to 1.50), but data were insufficient in terms of exposure and follow-up.

"It is necessary to continue to monitor the comparative and long-term safety profiles of these drugs," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

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