title: Therapeutic efficacy of infliximab on patients with short duration of Crohn's disease: a Japanese multicenter survey.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of infliximab in patients with Crohn's disease of durations less than one year.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two nationwide surveys of 35 Japanese institutions majoring in inflammatory bowel disease identified 41 patients with active Crohn's disease who were treated by infliximab within 12 months after the diagnosis (E-group) and 97 patients treated later during their clinical course (L-group). Clinical features, responses to infliximab, and accompanying medications were compared between the two groups. A decrease in Crohn's disease activity index > or = 70 or the index < 150 two weeks after infliximab was regarded to be efficacious.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The age was younger (24 vs. 33 years, median, P < 0.0001) and intestinal stricture (12 vs. 49 percent, P < 0.0001), internal fistula (0 vs. 26 percent, P = 0.0003), and previous intestinal resection (7 vs. 57 percent, P < 0.0001) were less frequent in the E-group than in the L-group. The efficacy of infliximab was different between the two groups with a significantly higher value in the E-group than in the L-group (90 vs. 61 percent, P = 0.0012). A multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed nonstricturing intestinal lesion to be a significant factor related to the efficacy of infliximab.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Infliximab is more efficacious in Crohn's disease with short duration, probably because of less frequent stenosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Maidashi 3-1-1, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8582, Japan. matane@intmed2.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: Mitsuo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iida
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Motoya
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Haruma
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Kiyonori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Mitsuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miyata
authors.forename: Masato
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kusunoki
authors.forename: Tsutomu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chiba
authors.forename: Shojiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.forename: Toshifumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hibi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D000069285:Infliximab; D007564:Japan; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents; D000069285:Infliximab