J Korean Med Sci.  2022 Apr;37(14):e107. 10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e107.

The Risk of Tuberculosis in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease Treated With Vedolizumab or Ustekinumab in Korea

• Choi MG
• Ye BD
• Yang SK
• Shim TS
• Jo KW
• Park SH

• KMID: 2528139
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e107

Abstract

The present study investigated the risk of active tuberculosis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treated with vedolizumab or ustekinumab, in actual clinical settings in a country with an intermediate tuberculosis burden. The medical records of 238 patients with IBD who received vedolizumab or ustekinumab were retrospectively reviewed at a tertiary referral center in South Korea. All patients had ≥ 3 months of follow-up duration and underwent a latent tuberculosis infection screening test before initiation of the administration of these drugs. Of the 238 patients enrolled, 181 had Crohn’s disease, and 57 had ulcerative colitis. During the median 18.7 months of follow-up, active tuberculosis did not develop in any patient treated with vedolizumab or ustekinumab. Therefore, we concluded that the risk of tuberculosis appears to be low in patients with IBD treated with vedolizumab or ustekinumab in South Korea.

Keyword

Vedolizumab; Ustekinumab; Tuberculosis; Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Flowchart of the study population.IBD = inflammatory bowel disease, LTBI = latent tuberculosis infection, TB = tuberculosis.

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