Real-world use of biologics during the first year of treatment for newly diagnosed Crohn's disease in Japan: a claims analysis from 2010 to 2021.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Crohn's disease (CD) leads to bowel damage and disability if suboptimally treated. We investigated firstyear treatment decisions and real-world use of biologics in patients with CD in Japan.

METHODS

In this retrospective observational study (2010-2021) from the JMDC claims database, patients with a new diagnosis of CD (no CD claims record within 12 months before index) who received ≥ 1 pre-defined treatment were grouped by use of biologics and systemic corticosteroids (SCS) within the first year of diagnosis.

RESULTS

Of 823 patients included, 470 (57.1%) were prescribed biologics and 353 (42.9%) were not; 77.6% were male, 75.7% had adult-onset CD, and median age was 24 years. Patients prescribed biologics were younger (median: 23 years vs. 28 years) and more had perianal lesions (43.0% vs. 22.9%) than those not prescribed biologics; 64.9% (95% confidence interval, 60.4%-69.2%) received a top-down treatment approach (no SCS before biologics). Factors significantly associated with a top-down treatment approach were male sex, perianal lesions, no use of immunomodulators, and use of anti-tumor necrosis factor therapies. The proportion of patients receiving SCS before biologics (step-up approach) increased after 2018, with a shift from prednisolone to budesonide from 2016. Persistence with first biologics decreased over time, with no differences between biologic types.

CONCLUSIONS

Use of biologics for treatment of CD within the first year of diagnosis in Japan has remained stable over the past decade. However, there was a shift to a step-up treatment approach, with an increase in use of SCS before biologics over time.