A double-blind trial of colchicine in Beh�et's syndrome

Abstract

Objective Colchicine is a widely used treatment for Behçet's syndrome, even though in a previous 6‐month controlled study, it was shown to be effective only in controlling erythema nodosum and arthralgias. We reassessed the effect of colchicine in Behçet's syndrome in a study conducted among a larger group of patients for 2 years. Methods We randomized 116 patients with Behçet's syndrome (60 male/56 female), who had active mucocutaneous disease without eye or major organ involvement, to receive either placebo or colchicine (1–2 mg/day, adjusted to body weight) in a double‐blind trial for 2 years. The primary outcome measure was the sustained absence of any lesions during treatment (complete response). The secondary outcome measure was the difference in the number of mucocutaneous lesions or arthritic joints between the active drug and placebo arms. Women and men were analyzed separately. Results Eighty‐four patients (72%; 45 male, 39 female) completed the 24‐month study. Kaplan‐Meier analyses showed significantly more complete responses in the colchicine treatment group in terms of reduced occurrence of genital ulcers (P = 0.004), erythema nodosum (P = 0.004), and arthritis (P = 0.033) among the women, and reduced occurrence of arthritis (P = 0.012) among the men. The mean numbers of genital ulcers (P = 0.001), erythema nodosum lesions (P = 0.002), and arthritic joints (P = 0.014) among the women were less in the colchicine group, and the mean number of arthritic joints (P = 0.026) among the men was less in the colchicine group. Adverse effects were similar in both groups. Conclusion Colchicine may be useful for treating some of the manifestations of Behçet's syndrome, especially among women. This might be a reflection of less severe disease among the women.

Successful Colchicine Therapy in a Patient With Follicular Bronchiolitis Presumed to Be Asthma

“…9,[11][12][13] Important data regarding longterm colchicine use was obtained from patients with familial Mediterranean fever and Behçet's disease. 14,15 Colchicine is known to have an effect on the pulmonary fibrotic process. Colchicine combined with prednisone has been used to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.…”

Pseudotumor cerebri como una manifestación excepcional de la enfermedad de Behçet: Caso clínico

“…Así, para las úlceras orales además del tratamiento tópico con corticoides y anestésicos, la colchicina es uno de los medicamentos más empleados. Hay evidencias que apoyan su utilidad en el eritema nodoso, úlceras y artritis en mujeres y en manifestaciones articulares en hombres 15 . También para este tipo de manifestaciones se ha usado azatioprina, ciclosporina y en series aisladas talidomida y dapsona, todos con buena respuesta 1 .…”

“…También para este tipo de manifestaciones se ha usado azatioprina, ciclosporina y en series aisladas talidomida y dapsona, todos con buena respuesta 1 . En casos refractarios se han empleado fármacos con actividad anti factor de necrosis tumoral alfa (TNF-α), existiendo un estudio aleatorio con etanercept y reportes con infliximab, con buenos resultados [15][16][17][18] . En cuanto a las manifestaciones oculares, esteroides sistémicos se combinan con inmunosupresores orales, existiendo evidencias que apoyan tanto la azatioprina como la ciclosporina.…”

Determination of Four Sequential Stages during Microautophagy in Vitro

“…Colchicine was shown to be effective for genital ulcers and nodular lesions especially in women, but there was some controversy regarding its efficacy in oral ulcers. [6][7][8] The efficacy of colchicine and immunosuppressives for papulopustular or …”

“…Colchicine was shown to be beneficial for preventing arthritis episodes in RCTs. [6][7][8] Some members of the task force favoured the use of continuous low-dose corticosteroids in patients whose arthritis is not controlled with colchicine whereas others preferred azathioprine, interferon-alpha or TNFis. 9 29 34 41 63 96 109-111 Intra-articular glucocorticoids may be helpful during an acute monoarticular attack.…”