Long-Term Outcomes After Cyclosporine vs. Infliximab for Acute Severe UC

Cyclosporine and infliximab have comparable short-term efficacy for the treatment of steroid-refractory acute severe ulcerative colitis (UC). Now, researchers have prospectively compared long-term outcomes with each drug in 115 patients previously randomized to cyclosporine or infliximab in a multicenter European trial.

The median follow-up period was 5.4 years following enrollment in the original trial. Using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, rates of colectomy-free survival at 1 and 5 years were 71% and 62% with cyclosporine and 69% and 65% with infliximab. In the cyclosporine arm, infliximab had been initiated at 1 and 5 years in 46% and 57%, respectively, whereas only four patients randomized to infliximab were switched to cyclosporine.