不良研究所

Canada has among the highest rates of Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in the world, averaging a new IBD diagnosis every 48 minutes. The onset of paediatric IBD was found in more than nine children per 100,000 in 2023 according to the Crohn鈥檚 and Colitis Canada 2023 Impact Report.

Dr. Jennifer deBruyn, MD, is the co-chair of  (CIDsCaNN) and first author of a new study comparing two advanced treatment options for paediatric Crohn鈥檚 disease, a type of IBD in children that she says needs further research.

鈥淭here are numerous studies comparing treatments for adults with Crohn鈥檚 disease. However, studies comparing the effectiveness of different medications for children with Crohn鈥檚 have been limited,鈥� says deBruyn, a paediatric gastroenterologist at the Alberta Children鈥檚 Hospital and associate professor in the departments of Community Health Sciences and Paediatrics at the  (CSM).

鈥淭his gap in paediatric research is common and is one of the reasons CIDsCaNN was established 鈥� to develop a clearer understanding of how children with Crohn鈥檚 disease respond to different treatments, using data gathered from across the country,鈥� she says.

Crohn鈥檚 disease causes chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. It can be painful and significantly impact a person鈥檚 quality of life. The cause is not known. 

The study, published in , compared the effectiveness of two widely used medications 鈥� adalimumab (ADA) and infliximab (IFX) 鈥� in children treated for Crohn鈥檚 disease in Canadian hospitals between 2014 and 2020.

Both ADA and IFX are widely used to treat inflammation, though the mode and frequency differ. Children enrolled in the study with similar diagnoses achieved favourable outcomes after one year of treatment with either medication. However, over the course of a year, children who received IFX more frequently were more likely to have treatment intensify (by increasing dose or frequency of treatments) to maintain a favourable outcome. 

Funding for this study and CIDsCaNN was provided by  and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.