LIALDA - 5 ASA Causes Ulcerative Coltis? According to Shire

Hello All, I was reading the Shire Website and it states:


"in clinical trials, common side effects reported with Lialda included ulcerative colitis, headache, gas, abnormal liver function test results, and stomach ache. Inflammation of the pancreas was reported which in some cases led to discontinuation of Lialda therapy. Other side effects may occur."

Can someone please explain why the drug lists a side effect the very conditions it is claiming to help??

Since the medical community claims total ignorance of the cause of UC and Crohns and the drugs they prescribe are known to cause the problem it is claiming to cure, doesn't this cause concern??


Please comment...

Thanks and best of luck to all...

Can anyone comment on this? I've been taking Lialda since I got diagnosed back in 09.

Hi Ucdad, mesalazine (also known as mesalamine) has a number of side effects. One of these is an acute intolerance that leads to diarrhoea (occasionally bloody) which resembles a flare of colitis, this occurs in around 2 to 4%. It tends to be earlier in the course of the medication, some authors (including the Lialda website) class this as a flare of UC, hence listing ulcerative colitis (or in more detail "a flare of ulcerative colitis") as a side effect.

The way to differentiate is to stop the medication and the diarrhoea gets better, whether you class it as a flare of UC or a diarrhoea side effect is probably a moot point.

SidS, if you've been on it for 3 years and doing well, the likelihood of it causing a flare would be quite rare as it would've happened closer to when you started the medication.

Best wishes.

Thanks Aussie. Can you please share your source for the 2-4% number...

Best regards,

ucdad,

On the Lialda website located here it states:

Mesalamine has been associated with an acute intolerance syndrome (3% of patients in clinical trials with mesalamine or sulfasalazine) that may be difficult to distinguish from an exacerbation of ulcerative colitis.

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Depending on the study (there have been many) you'll see around 2-4% AIS for the various mesalamine formulations.

Thanks for the insight Aussie. Makes sense three years and nothing bad has happened.

"In clinical trials of active ulcerative colitis comparing mesalamine with placebo, the fraction of patients with adverse events ranged from 13% to 73% with mesalamine vs. 22% to 61% with placebo (Loftus et al 2003). The most commonly reported adverse events with the 5-ASA formulations include headache, GI symptoms such as diarrhea, bloating, nausea. Other rare side effects include interstitial nephritis, hepatitis, pericarditis, pancreatitis, pneumonitis, dermatitis, " google this...


As per the studies - 13-73% experience the most common side affects listed above... More people taking 5-ASA got the sides affects vs the placebo group----Very Suspicious indeed!


Once again, I am pointing out a huge inconsistency with Big Pharma and their so called "treatments"

Am I the only once concerned about the side affects of the drug meant to treat what it causes???

How does one know if their disease was a short term phenomenon, when the drug prescribed could cause it to be chronic???

ucdad said:

How does one know if their disease was a short term phenomenon, when the drug prescribed could cause it to be chronic???

Click to expand...

ucdad, you aren't the only one wondering that same question. I was ddx in '07 after an acute flare - 1st visit to a GI. They instantly placed me on Pentasa. Since then I've gone through Pentasa, MP6 (1 month), Lialda, Apriso, back to Lialda, and now on Remicade. I've had at least one severe flare per year since '07. Prior to '07 I had no flares in the gut that match anything I've had since. Not only that, the flares have become progressively worse as I've been on the medication. Luckily its only been 1-2x per each calendar year.

So I'm asking myself.. the first 30 yrs of my life I have no flares yet I've had CD this whole time? They find it, put me on meds, and I've had more problems in the last 5 years while medicated than I had the previous 30 while undiagnosed? You cannot be serious. How are the drugs helping?

The only benefit I've noticed is I have had fewer joint issues. For me, the arthritic manifestation of CD has been my biggest problem, surpassing gut issues. Knock on wood, since on Remicade I have not had a joint issue nor a flare. But it's been under a year still.

It feels like such a toss-up. It's exasperating. CD is serious, and if left untreated/uncontrolled can kill your quality of life. I want to say drugs aren't the answer but at the same time I'm afraid to go off them in case I'm wrong.

I read everyone's posts on this forum and it seems the majority are on this medication, that medication, have taken tons of medications, taking all sorts of supplements, etc. but they are all still complaining about flare-ups and other CD-related issues. Then they go on mood-enhancers, depression meds, meds to counter side effect of other meds. Gosh, where does it all stop? Why are we ingesting all this chemical crap into our bodies if it isn't working?

So I'm sorry I have no direct answer to your post but I want you to know you aren't the only one puzzled by the meds.

As I do more research, it is becoming increasingly obvious what the real motivation of big pharma is and it does not look like it has anything to do with Curing or Helping anyone...

I always knew their motivation was money, but with the amount of outright "Drug trial rigging,bribery and fraud" they have been caught lately undertaking, I am very nervous about playing their game.

"Big Pharma criminality no longer a conspiracy theory: Bribery, fraud, price fixing now a matter of public record" see naturalnews or google this....."GlaxoSmithKline has just been fined a whopping $3 billion for bribing doctors, lying to the FDA, hiding clinical trial data and fraudulent marketing"

Also, when I met with a GI to talk about colitis, he said if meds are not taken daily "forever" there is a 60% chance of flaring.... Sure sounds like a load of BS to me.

Lets see, take a load a pills that will cause ugly side effects that require other pills, or have a 40% of not having a flare, doing nothing....hmmmm,... Never once did he mention Pro Bio, diet, or anything else other than "kool aid" to get his Big Pharma paid trip to Europe this summer... and once he has prescribed his quota of "kool aid" he gets to pay for his new Cadillac with the colon removal surgery he will need to perform later on- potentially because of the "Kool Aid"....which was option C.

I am not saying this about all GI's or drug manufacturing companies, but it sure sounds like the case here....

Yes caused painful increased bowel movements and Diarhea for my friend and myself. We no longer take this junk.

My GI was pissed when I turned down Humira after it was approved and arrived to his office. I am now off all meds, feel great, eat whatever I want in moderation, eat organic whole foods, and have solid painless bowel movements every day.

5asa's caused me pain everytime I took them. I ended up having to take them at night. my gi scoffed at the idea that they were bothering me and put it down to IBS. fast forward 8 months or so and im hospital with pancreatitis. they have no way of telling me what caused it, but I got of them then.
Was put on remicade and now that stuff messing with my liver.

johnnyO I like your way. no drugs and all natural. worth the risk to come of everything and let it be...
ju

I'd get a 2nd and 3rd opinion. I may be wrong, but I think it was probably a mistake to put you on imminosuppresants if you have pancreatitis.

johhny,
I was sent to a specialist and got a 2nd opinion. im waiting now till I get to Canada. emigrating this year hopefully..
my gi did say he has no idea what effect remicade had on the pancreas. it was like "try it and see". I know theres been studies about 6mp and the like causing pancreatitis.
ju

He didn't look it up? I'd get a new GI. I can't see how it can be good. As far as I know immunosuppresants arw contraindicated if you have any infections or even chance of infection.

he did look it up but there's not much out there on it. same old story. not enough research.

ju