Why Is There Low Utilization of Biosimilars in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients by Gastroenterology Advanced
1Department of Medicine, Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA.
Aim:
To assess knowledge, practice patterns and attitudes toward the use of biosimilars by Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) treating patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Background:
APPs provide care in a variety of healthcare settings including medical specialties. In Gastroenterology, they are an integral part of providing care to a complex group of patients with IBD. There has been an increase in options of medical therapies for treating IBD. These include small molecules, biologics, and biosimilars. Adoption of biosimilars for treatment of IBD patients by gastroenterologists in the United States compared to Europe has been slow for several reasons. There is lack of data on their use by APPs who provide frontline IBD clinical care in the United States.
Methods:
Questionnaire-based survey of APPs attending Gastroenterology conferences with a focus on IBD.
Results:
APPs in gastroenterology do not routinely consider the use of biosimilars in their practice.
Conclusions:
There is low utilization of biosimilars in treating IBD patients by APPs. In addition, there are significant concerns about risk of side effects as well as perceived lack of APP targeted educational resources.
Related Concept Videos
Inflammatory Bowel Disease IV: Pharmacological Management
Pharmacologic...
Drugs for Treatment of Crohn's Disease in IBD Using Biologic Agents: Anti-TNF
Inflammatory Bowel Disease V: Surgical Management
Here are some common surgical interventions for IBD:
Drugs for Treatment of Crohn's Disease in IBD Using Glucocorticoids
Inflammatory Bowel Disease III: Diagnostic Studies and Management I-Nutritional Therapy
Diagnostic studies
A colonoscopy is the definitive screening test, distinguishing ulcerative colitis from other colon diseases with similar symptoms. During a colonoscopy test, inflamed mucosa with exudate ulcerations can be observed, and biopsies are taken to determine the histologic characteristics of the...
Inflammatory Bowel Disease II: Crohn's Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease, commonly known as IBD, refers to a collection of disorders that lead to persistent inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. The two types of IBD are ulcerative colitis, which impacts the colon, and Crohn's disease, which can involve any part of the gastrointestinal segment.
Crohn's disease
Crohn's disease is a chronic, systemic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that predominantly affects the gastrointestinal tract. It is marked by...


