Open AccessMesalazine preparations for the treatment of ulcerative colitis: Are all created equal?
Author(s) -
Bei Ye,
Daniel R. van Langenberg
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
world journal of gastrointestinal pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2150-5349
DOI - 10.4292/wjgpt.v6.i4.137
Subject(s) - mesalazine , ulcerative colitis , medicine , bioequivalence , gastroenterology , drug , pharmacology , aminosalicylic acid , colitis , pharmacokinetics , disease
Oral mesalazine (also known as mesalamine) is a 5-aminosalicylic acid compound used in the treatment of mild to moderate ulcerative colitis, with high rates of efficacy in induction and maintenance of remission. The therapeutic effect of mesalazine occurs topically at the site of diseased colonic mucosa. A myriad of oral mesalazine preparations have been formulated with various drug delivery methods to minimize systemic absorption and maximise drug availability at the inflamed colonic epithelium. It remains unclear whether different oral mesalazine formulations are bioequivalent. This review aims to evaluate the differences between mesalazine formulations based on the currently available literature and explore factors which may influence the selection of one agent above another.