| IBS and IBD In The News | |
Growth Hormone, Methotrexate Used to Treat Crohn's Disease
Reuters Health May 31, 2000| Other News | |
An article published in the June 1st issue of The New England Journal of Medicine reports that human growth hormone and methotrexate could be beneficial in treating Crohn's disease.
Combined with a high-protein diet, human growth hormone reduced symptoms in Crohn's patients studied at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, New York. These results were seen as early as one month into the study, and continued for the remainder of the trial. The improvements seen by the patients in turn curtailed the need for steroids or immunossupressants. Some patients taking the growth hormone saw side effects of swelling and headaches, but for most these symptoms were gone within a month of the treatment.
In the methotrexate study conducted at the John P. Robarts Research Institute in London, Ontario, 65% of patients taking the drug continued in remission, compared to 39% of the placebo patients. The improvements experienced by patients taking methotrexate resulted in a reduced need for corticosteroids (i.e. prednisone). It was concluded that methotrexate is an effective drug for maintaining remission in Crohn's patients.
Researchers indicate that more study is needed to determine the long term effects of both drugs.
