[Treatment of acute a steroid-resistant ulcerative colitis with continuous venous infusion of cyclosporine].
Aim of this open study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a low-dose treatment of continuous intravenous infusion of cyclosporine. We treated twelve patients with severe active ulcerative colitis, that did not respond to high doses of intravenous steroid for at least ten days. We used a dose of 2 mg/kg/day for 15 days. After this period, if patients improved, cyclosporine was administered orally at the dose of 6 mg/kg/day for six months. The response rate to acute phase therapy was 92.8%. The mean response time was 5.8 days. Sixty-nine percent of patients responded within the first week. No adverse reaction was observed. The first five patients responding to acute phase therapy relapsed during or at the end of maintenance phase. Because of that, azathioprine was associated in the successive patients. Only 4 out of 12 patients (33%) were operated on.


CONCLUSIONS
continuous intravenous infusion of cyclosporine at dosage of 2 mg/kg/day is a highly effective and safe therapy that may avoid or defer colectomy to eligible conditions.
Rosselli
M
M
Clinica Medica R, Università, Palermo.
Casà
A
A
Oliva
L
L
Orlando
A
A
Cottone
M
M
D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004351:Drug Resistance; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008775:Methylprednisolone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008875:Middle Aged
D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D016572:Cyclosporine; D008775:Methylprednisolone
Trattamento dell'attacco acuto di colite ulcerosa steroido-resistente con ciclosporina in infusione venosa continua.