AzTrials
AzTrials

Crohn's DiseasePhase 4NCT00554710

Top Down Versus Step Up Strategies in Crohn's Disease

A Phase 4 study testing infliximab+azathioprine and methylprednisolone or budesonide in people with Crohn's Disease, run by Belgian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research and Development (BIRD) VZW at 1 site in Belgium.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

The study prospectively compares two treatment algorithms for newly diagnosed Crohn's disease: one 'aggressive' treatment with early introduction of immunomodulators and biologicals and one 'standard treatment' with corticosteroids and only later introduction of immunosuppressives and biologicals if disease activity… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 16 to 75 years
Conditions the study is for
Crohn's Disease
What is being tested?
infliximab+azathioprine and methylprednisolone or budesonide
Type of treatment
Injection or infusion
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
129 participants
Where
1 siteBelgium
Study dates
May 2001to Jan 2004
Phase
Phase 4
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 16 to 75 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • age 16 - 75 years
  • diagnosis of Crohn's disease within the past 4 years
  • no previous treatment with corticosteroids, antimetabolites, or biologic agents.
  • Active Crohn's disease, defined by a Crohn's Disease Activity Index (CDAI)20 score of greater than 200 points for a minimum of 2 weeks prior to randomization.

Who cannot join

  • immediate need for surgery
  • symptomatic stenosis or ileal/colonic strictures with prestenotic dilatation;
  • signs, symptoms or laboratory tests indicating severe, medical disease;
  • documented chronic infection
  • a positive stool culture for pathogens
  • a positive tuberculin test or a chest radiograph consistent with tuberculosis.
Show all 10Show fewer
  • malignancy
  • allergy to murine proteins
  • pregnancy
  • substance abuse

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Belgium1 site
  • Imelda GI Clinical Research Center

    Bonheiden, 2820

Other trials in Belgium

About this study

Official title: The Ideal Management of Crohn's Disease: Top Down Versus Step Up Strategies. A Prospective Controlled Trial in the Benelux

The study prospectively compares two treatment algorithms for newly diagnosed Crohn's disease: one 'aggressive' treatment with early introduction of immunomodulators and biologicals and one 'standard treatment' with corticosteroids and only later introduction of immunosuppressives and biologicals if disease activity requires that.

Read the detailed description

This two year open-label randomized trial compares the early use of combined immunosuppression to conventional management in patients with active Crohn's disease who have not previously received glucocorticoids, antimetabolites, or infliximab. Patients assigned to combined immunosuppression receive azathioprine and 3 infusions of 5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight of infliximab at weeks 0, 2, and 6. Retreatment with infliximab and, if ultimately necessary, corticosteroids are used to control disease activity. Patients assigned to conventional management receive corticosteroids followed, in sequence, by azathioprine and infliximab. The primary outcome measure is remission without corticosteroids and without bowel resection at weeks 26 and 52.

Conditions
Crohn's Disease
Being tested
infliximab+azathioprine, methylprednisolone or budesonide
Keywords
Crohn's disease, immunomodulators, biologicals
Medical subject headings
Crohn Disease

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • infliximab+azathioprineDrug

    Also called remicade/imuran

    infliximab 5 mg/kg at week 0,2 and 6 + azathioprine 2-2.5 mg/kg

  • methylprednisolone or budesonideDrug

    Also called Medrol, entocort, budenofalk

    methylprednisolone 32 mg followed by taper or budesonide 9 mg/day followed by taper

Study groups in NCT00554710
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
1ExperimentalPatients received three infusions of infliximab 5 milligrams per kilogram (weeks 0, 2 and 6) in combination with azathioprine 2-2.5 milligrams per kilogram per day from day 0 onwards. If the patients responded and tolerated both drugs, azathioprine was continued for the duration of the trial. Patients who were intolerant to azathioprine received methotrexate at an initial dose of 25 milligrams administered subcutaneously each week for 12 weeks with dose reduction to 15 milligrams per week thereafter. Following initial therapy, patients who developed worsening symptoms were retreated with additional infusions of infliximab. If symptoms persisted methylprednisolone was initiated and azathioprine or methotrexate was continued.
Receives: Drug: infliximab+azathioprine
2Active comparatorInduction with methylprednisolone (MP) or budesonide (BUD): MP 32 mg/day for 3 weeks was followed by tapering by 4 mg per week to 0; BUD 9 mg per day for 8 weeks with tapering to 0 by 3 mg per week thereafter.Patients who worsened during the tapering had the dose increased to the initial dose and tapered again. If patients worsened, azathioprine (2-2.5 mg per day) was introduced. Patients who relapsed following withdrawal of steroids received a second course in combination with azathioprine. For patients who failed 4 weeks of steroids, MP dose was given at 64 mg/day for 2 weeks, tapered by 8 mg per week; azathioprine was added. Patients who remained symptomatic despite 16 weeks of azathioprine received infliximab (5 mg/kg IV at weeks 0, 2 and 6). Patients who relapsed despite methotrexate or those intolerant to both azathioprine and methotrexate also received infliximab, without antimetabolite therapy. Infliximab was repeated upon relapse of symptoms in these patients.
Receives: Drug: methylprednisolone or budesonide

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. remission without corticosteroids and without surgical resection

    Measured: month 6 and 12 after inclusion

Secondary outcomes (5)
  1. the time to relapse after successful induction therapy

    Measured: within 24 months

  2. the proportion of patients receiving infliximab, methylprednisolone and antimetabolites

    Measured: within 24 months

  3. the median serum C-reactive protein concentration

    Measured: 24 months

  4. the proportion of patients experiencing adverse events

    Measured: 24 months

  5. the mean endoscopic severity scores and the proportion of patients without ulcers

    Measured: after 24 months

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted7 Nov 2007 (estimated)
  2. Study startMay 2001
  3. Study completionJan 2004

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
129 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00554710
Sponsor's protocol ID
P01872
Status last verified
Nov 2007
First submitted
6 Nov 2007
Last updated
7 Nov 2007
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • D'Haens G, Baert F, van Assche G, Caenepeel P, Vergauwe P, Tuynman H, De Vos M, van Deventer S, Stitt L, Donner A, Vermeire S, Van De Mierop FJ, Coche JR, van der Woude J, Ochsenkuhn T, van Bodegraven AA, Van Hootegem PP, Lambrecht GL, Mana F, Rutgeerts P, Feagan BG, Hommes D; Belgian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research Group; North-Holland Gut Club. Early combined immunosuppression or conventional management in patients with newly diagnosed Crohn's disease: an open randomised trial. Lancet. 2008 Feb 23;371(9613):660-667. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)60304-9.

    PubMed 18295023

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 4 study testing infliximab+azathioprine and methylprednisolone or budesonide in people with Crohn's Disease, run by Belgian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research and Development (BIRD) VZW at 1 site in Belgium.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 10 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 7 Nov 2007. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Belgium. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 4 studies take place after a treatment is approved, to learn more about its long-term benefits and risks in everyday use.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

remission without corticosteroids and without surgical resection (time frame: month 6 and 12 after inclusion). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00554710, which also lists 1 linked publication.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 7 Nov 2007.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in