Patients receiving advanced treatment report fewer side effects than the general population –ScienceDaily

IBD, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, is a chronic disease in which the intestinal immune system overreacts, causing chronic diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms. In a study published at the start of distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, 70% of IBD patients reported concerns about the side effects of the vaccine.

“What we have learned is that if you have IBD, the side effects you are likely to experience after a vaccine are no different than the side effects you may experience with others.” At Cedars-Sinai Clinical study of inflammatory bowel disease. “If you are receiving advanced treatments such as biopharmacy, these side effects can be even mild, so don’t vaccinate for that reason.

Evaluation of side effects after vaccination

Patients with IBD and other immune-related disorders receiving biotherapy were excluded from the COVID-19 vaccine trial, so Melmed and fellow researchers are using the national COVID-used by Cedars researchers. 19 vaccine enrollments evaluated post-vaccination side effects in 246 adult IBD patients-Sinai.

These patients, like those in the general population, had the most pain and swelling at the injection site, followed by fatigue, headache and dizziness, fever and chills, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Most side effects were mild and lasted only a few days.

Few IBD patients have reported serious side effects. The most common are fatigue, fever and headaches. Of the 246 patients surveyed, only two reported severe gastrointestinal symptoms.

Many IBD patients have expressed concern that vaccination may cause “redness” or worsening of the condition. Research is underway to determine whether post-vaccination gastrointestinal symptoms are due to redness or simply a response to the vaccine. However, Melmed emphasized that most of the reported gastrointestinal symptoms were short-lived and resolved spontaneously.

Approximately 80% of the patients in the study received advanced therapies that targeted the body’s immune response, including various biological therapies and Janus kinase inhibitor therapies. Melmed said this inhibition of the immune system could explain the slightly smaller number of side effects reported by these patients.

“Many of these adverse events can actually be caused by the immune system that responds to the vaccine,” Melmed said. “That is, if you are taking a drug that regulates part of your immune system, your response to the vaccine may not be very strong.”

Patients with other types of immune-related disorders receiving these treatments may also have fewer side effects.

“Because these drugs are widely used in dermatology, neurology, rheumatism and other disciplines, we believe our results are applicable to patients with other immune-mediated inflammatory diseases.” , Co-author of the study, and Translational Research of Cedars-Sinai’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics, Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Immunobiology Institute and Chairs Joshua L. and Lisa Z. Greer. “We work with our oncology colleagues to understand the effects of vaccines on people being treated for cancer, and with our healthcare professional research partners, it’s an autoimmune disease.”

Expansion of research

Meanwhile, the current study of IBD patients has been extended for five years to help researchers determine if their immune system is modulated by IBD treatment and thus their protection from the COVID-19 vaccine is diminished. I have.

“It is not yet known whether these vaccines will build lasting immunity to COVID-19 in patients with immune-mediated diseases,” said Susan Cheng, MD, co-author of the study and director of public health research. Said female chairman Erica J. Glazer. Cedars-Sinai Cardiovascular Health and Population Science. “Gathering this crucial information is the next step for our research team.”

Funding: This study was supported by Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charity Trust, the Wijaya Foundation Institute for Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Immunobiology, National Institute of Diabetes, Gastroenterological and Kidney Disease Grants P01DK046763 and U01DK062413 It was. This study is partially funded by NCI U54-CA260591 through the Cedars Sinai Precision Health Initiative, the Erica J. Glazer Family Foundation, and the Serological Science Network.

Financial Disclosure: Dermot McGovern and Gil Melmed are consultants to Pfizer Inc. related to IBD treatment. Melmed received research funding from Pfizer for unrelated researcher-led research.

Cedars-Sinai Blog: What IBD Patients Should Know About COVID-19