title: Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F as Maintenance Treatment for Crohn's Disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The traditional Chinese medicine, Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F (TwHF) is widely used to treat Crohn's disease (CD) in China.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors compared different doses of TwHF with mesalazine in 198 patients with CD over a 52-week period. Subjects were randomized to receive mesalazine (3 g/d), low-dose TwHF (1.5 mg·kg·d), or high-dose TwHF (2.0 mg·kg·d).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 137 patients completed the study. At week 52, a significant lower proportion of patients in the high-dose TwHF group (7/71) had clinical recurrence compared with patients in the low-dose TwHF (15/68, P = 0.047) or mesalazine group (17/59, P = 0.006), whereas the difference between the low-dose TwHF group and the mesalazine group was not significant (P = 0.503). Patients receiving mesalazine experienced less adverse events than those receiving high-dose TwHF (P = 0.029) and those receiving low-dose TwHF (P = 0.048), but no significant difference was found about drug adverse events resulted withdrawal in the 3 groups (P > 0.05). In addition, compared with low-dose TwHF and mesalazine, the authors also detected significant superiority of high-dose TwHF arm in the decrease of CDAI and SESCD (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A 2.0 mg/kg daily TwHF was well tolerated and prolonged remission in patients with CD.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Jinling Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Xiao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Jianning
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Honggang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Lugen
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zuo
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Weiming
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jianfeng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Jieshou
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D016903:Drug Monitoring; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions / Q000209:etiology; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D019804:Mesalamine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D062072:Patient Acuity; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D028321:Plant Preparations / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D012008:Recurrence; D012074:Remission Induction / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D029757:Tripterygium
chemical_list: D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D028321:Plant Preparations; D019804:Mesalamine