Discontinuation of Infliximab Therapy in Patients with Crohn's Disease

NEJM Evid. 2022 Aug;1(8):EVIDoa2200061. doi: 10.1056/EVIDoa2200061. Epub 2022 Jun 14.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Whether infliximab therapy can be successfully discontinued after patients with Crohn’s disease have attained sustained, clinical, biochemical, and endoscopic remission is unknown. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled withdrawal study of infliximab in patients with Crohn’s disease who were in clinical, biochemical, and endoscopic remission after standard infliximab maintenance therapy for at least 1 year. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to continue infliximab therapy or to receive matching placebo for 48 weeks. The primary end point was time to relapse. RESULTS: This study randomly assigned 115 patients to either the infliximab-continuation group or to the infliximab-discontinuation group. No relapses were observed among the 59 patients continuing infliximab, whereas 23 of 56 patients discontinuing infliximab experienced relapse. Time to relapse was significantly shorter among patients who discontinued infliximab than among those who continued infliximab (hazard ratio, 0.080; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.035 to 0.186; P<0.001). At the end of the trial at week 48, relapse-free survival was 100% in the infliximab-continuation group and 51% in the infliximab-discontinuation group. The key secondary end point, time to loss of remission, was significantly shorter among patients discontinuing infliximab therapy than those continuing infliximab (hazard ratio, 0.025; 95% CI, 0.003 to 0.187; P<0.001). No unexpected adverse events were reported. CONCLUSIONS: Discontinuation of infliximab for patients with Crohn’s disease receiving long-term infliximab therapy and in clinical, biochemical, and endoscopic remission leads to a considerable risk of relapse. (Funded by the Nordic Trial Alliance [NordForsk], the Medical Fund of the Danish Regions [Regionernes Medicin og Behandlingspulje], the Danish Colitis-Crohn Association, and the A.P. Moller Foundation; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01817426; EudraCT number, 2012-002702-51.)

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Multicenter Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal / administration & dosage
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal / adverse effects
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use
  • Crohn Disease* / drug therapy
  • Double-Blind Method
  • Female
  • Gastrointestinal Agents* / administration & dosage
  • Gastrointestinal Agents* / adverse effects
  • Gastrointestinal Agents* / therapeutic use
  • Humans
  • Infliximab* / administration & dosage
  • Infliximab* / adverse effects
  • Infliximab* / therapeutic use
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Recurrence
  • Remission Induction
  • Treatment Outcome
  • Withholding Treatment / statistics & numerical data
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Infliximab
  • Gastrointestinal Agents
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal

Associated data

  • ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT01817426