Infusion Therapy for the Treatment of IBD

Infusion Therapy for the Treatment of IBD

Living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) can be overwhelming. The pain, discomfort, and constantly feeling bloated or gassy can also make you feel embarrassed.

Thankfully, treatment for IBD has made significant advances in the last several decades. And the development of biologic infusion drugs has helped many patients put their symptoms into remission.

Infusion therapy came to revolutionize how physicians and patients can manage IBD. If you have Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis, you may be wondering what infusion therapy is, how it works, and if it’s right for you.

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What is Infusion Therapy?

Infusion therapy refers to medications or supplements administered intravenously (through a needle or catheter).

IBD patients may need infusion therapy to receive their prescribed medications, manage dehydration or replenish nutrients such as iron.

Biologic infusion therapy, therefore, involves receiving prescribed biologic drugs intravenously.

What Are Biologic Drugs?

Biologic medications are drugs produced from living organisms. These man-made proteins target specific areas of the immune system, helping to control the function of other proteins and cellular processes.

These drugs are also known as biologic response modifiers because they essentially change cellular and intracellular actions.

Biologics can either activate components of the immune system or suppress them depending on a patient’s condition.

Doctors may prescribe any of these biologics to patients who are not responding adequately to other forms of treatment.

Different Types of Biologic Drugs for IBD

There are currently five different biologic medicines available to treat moderate to severe Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis, the two primary forms of IBD. These are Infliximab, Adalimumab, Vedolizumab and Ustekinumab, and Golimumab.  Please click on each to get to know more about Infusion Therapy for the Treatment of IBD:

Biologics for Crohn’s Disease

Infliximab and Adalimumab effectively treat fistulizing Crohn’s disease in patients that haven’t had a satisfactory response to other treatments.

Vedolizumab is an excellent treatment option if other treatments such as steroids and immunosuppressants have proven ineffective or your doctor doesn’t think these treatments are advisable for you.

Ustekinumab and Vedolizumab are suitable for when immunosuppressants or steroids haven’t worked, or an anti-TNF drug such as Adalimumab and Golimumab hasn’t been effective, has stopped working, or the side effects are difficult to manage.

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How to Know If Biologic Infusion Therapy is Right for You?

Only your doctor can prescribe a biologic drug.

To determine if infusion therapy is the course of action for your disease management, it’s vital that you have an honest and open conversation with your doctor regarding your current symptoms, disease progression, and medications.

Your doctor will assess how well you respond to your prescribed treatments and if adding biologic infusions is the right choice.

Keep in mind that frequency and dosing will change depending on how well you respond to infusions, and in some cases, your doctor may switch your biologic drug. 

Infusion therapy is not for everyone, and finding the exact dosing and treatment frequency is a process. Results are also progressive, so don’t be dismayed if you don’t see immediate results after your first infusion.

Follow your doctor’s recommendations and always inform them of any new or worsening symptoms.

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