Effectiveness of Mesalamine in Patients With Ulcerative Colitis: A Systematic Review

Ulcerative colitis (UC) management has changed significantly in the past decade. The goal is to treat the symptoms, aid tissue healing, and change the disease course to improve future outcomes. Oral or topical mesalamine (5-ASA) is a well-known UC treatment. It is the standard for starting and maintaining recovery in mild-to-moderate illnesses. The majority of patients start the treatment in the first year after diagnosis and continue it for long periods. In this review article, PubMed/Medline, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane Library were used to search medical databases for relevant medical literature. After the articles were gathered and evaluated, 10 publications were compiled and selected using the qualifying criteria. The included articles aimed to provide an overview of 5-ASA in UC patients. According to several studies, there was no statistical relevance between various 5-ASA doses or the number of times they were taken. One study showed that 5-ASA cream preparation is better than oral preparation for patients with proctitis and proctosigmoiditis. The majority of the studies performed a follow-up to assess remission based on the use of endoscopy, fecal calprotectin, and patient symptoms during the investigations. Based on the aforementioned information, further investigation is required to ascertain the optimal approach for managing UC, with the aim of incorporating it into routine clinical procedures and enhancing our understanding of the subject matter.