Remicade? Should I try it or not?

Remicade came to the Crohn's Disease world with a blast and was quickly labeled a "miracle Drug", in some cases even called a cure. As time went by the glitter of using this treatment began to fade. Reports came in of needing repeated treatments, treatments that did not seem to have any effect on some people. Possible side effects, and allergic reactions were being noted.

Let's look at the Drug Remicade and the path it has followed so far. Remicade is an intravenous drug. Given in an I.V. that takes approximately 2 hours. The most common side effect of the initial treatment is a warm feeling, and most patients say they sleep more that day. Well hey for Crohn's that is not a bad thing. We need our rest anyway.

Remicade is recommended for use in moderate to severe Crohn's for patients that have not responded to conventional treatment, and to close fistulas. The recommended dosage for reducing symptoms in moderate to severe Crohn's is 5mg/kg. In patients responding to an initial infusion of remicade, up to 4 infusions given at 8 week intervals may be administered to sustain clinical benefits.

The recommended dosage for closure of fistulae is also 5mg/kg, 2 additional 5mg/kg doses should be administered at 2 and 6 weeks following the first infusion.

In a four-week clinical trial, Remicade reduced symptoms in 82 percent of the participants, compared to 16 percent in those taking a placebo. In fact, 48 percent of those on the drug had clinical remission, characterized as a dramatic reduction in symptoms.

In a study of patients with fistulizing Crohn's, 68 percent experienced closure of at least half of their fistulas for four weeks or more, versus 26 percent of those treated with placebo. However, six patients who initially responded to the medication developed abscesses around the fistula between eight and 16 weeks after the last infusion.

Besides treating Crohn's and maybe rheumatoid arthritis, Remicade may eventually be useful in the treatment of asthma, and perhaps treatment of children with Crohn's, though it has yet to be studied on either of these groups.

Remicade is made by Centacor you can visit there webpage here http://www.centocor.com.

Here is a page from the CCFA that discusses remicade as a maintenance therapy for Crohn's. I found it quite interesting. http://www.ccfa.org/news/clincal/cent.htm

In general the main question I am asked is "Would you try remicade?" Yes, I would if it were offered to me. Even if it becomes nothing more than a maintenance drug. It has been

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