Survey Based on Claims Data of New Control-released Budesonide for Crohn’s Disease

Abstract

Background: Crohn’s disease (CD) is an idiopathic inflammatory disease that causes discontinuous chronic granulomatous inflammation and other symptoms in the entire gastrointestinal tract. It is treated mainly internally; however, systemic side effects of drugs such as steroids can become an issue and interfere with continued treatment. Budesonide sustained-release products that have low systemic bioavailability exhibit high therapeutic efficacy and low side effects. There is little evidence that budesonide has been used in Japan. Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify and characterize concomitant medications and laboratory tests in patients using budesonide extended-release products. Methods: Fifty-one patients diagnosed with CD and prescribed with budesonide sustained-release products were identified in the JMDC Claims Database between November 2016 and June 30, 2017, and were selected for the study. Results and Discussion: Patients using budesonide extended-release formulations consumed lower amounts of 5-ASA and PSL compared to those who did not use budesonide before consuming 5-ASA and PSL. Data indicated that changes in treatment were made due to the ineffectiveness of other drugs. Also, among patients with a risk of HBV reactivation (N=41), the frequency of relevant antibody testing was low (N=17), thereby indicating a possible lack of appropriate testing for treatment selection.