Background: Azathiopurine (AZA) is efficacious for maintenance remission of Crohn�s disease (CD) at the standard\r\ndose of 2.0-2.5 mg/kg for Caucasian. It has been reported that the lower dose (1.0-2.0 mg/kg) in some Asian\r\ncountries was as effective as the standard dose. In the present study we analyzed the efficacy of <1.0 mg/kg AZA in\r\nmaintaining remission for Chinese patients.\r\nMethods: The clinical data of all CD patients were reviewed from 1993 to December 2012. The patients who\r\ninitiated AZA treatment and were followed for = 2 years with complete medical data were included. We divided\r\nthe patients into two groups according to their initial dose: <1.0 mg/kg group and 1.0-2.0 mg/kg group.\r\nResults: Among 77 patients, 39 (50.6%) started treatment with <1.0 mg/kg AZA and 38 (49.4%) with 1.0-2.0 mg/kg.\r\nThe mean dose of <1.0 mg/kg group remained under 1.0 mg/kg at 6, 12 and 24 months, even if the doses were\r\nadjusted according to efficacy and tolerance. The remission rate in patients of <1.0 mg/kg group was significantly\r\nhigher than that in those of 1.0-2.0 mg/kg group (P = 0.025). A dose of <1.0 mg/kg AZA was more commonly\r\nassociated with male gender, older age, heavier body weight and L1 location. Adverse events were observed in 21\r\nof 77 patients (27.3%) and no significant difference in occurrence of adverse events or leucopenia between two\r\ngroups.\r\nConclusions: <1.0 mg/kg AZA was effective as 1.0-2.0 mg/kg in maintaining remission among Chinese patients\r\nwith CD.
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