Abstract
In 2008 three biological agents against TNFalpha will be available. The combination of infliximab with azathioprine is no longer recommended, as hepatosplenic lymphomas with a particularly bad prognosis have been associated with this combined therapy. Regular maintenance therapy with infliximab is as effective in preventing the development of anti-infliximab antibodies as co-administration of this anti-TNFalpha agent with an immunomodulator. The benefit of regular maintenance therapy is probably linked to the presence of residual trough levels of infliximab between perfusions.
MeSH terms
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Adalimumab
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Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use*
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Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized
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Certolizumab Pegol
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Colitis, Ulcerative / drug therapy
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Crohn Disease / drug therapy
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Crohn Disease / surgery
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Humans
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Immunoglobulin Fab Fragments / therapeutic use
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Immunologic Factors / therapeutic use
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Infliximab
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Irritable Bowel Syndrome / drug therapy*
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Polyethylene Glycols / therapeutic use
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / antagonists & inhibitors*
Substances
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Antibodies, Monoclonal
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Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized
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Immunoglobulin Fab Fragments
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Immunologic Factors
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
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Polyethylene Glycols
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Infliximab
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Adalimumab
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Certolizumab Pegol