[Update on drug therapy for ulcerative colitis]

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is classified as a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and can present in various degrees of severity. In addition to mild courses of the disease, such as uncomplicated proctitis, which can often be successfully treated with topical 5-ASA formulations, complicated courses can be observed, which can sometimes be life-threatening. Affected patients are often considerably burdened and often severely restricted in their quality of life, as they suffer from numerous, often bloody bowel movements, which are accompanied by abdominal cramps, urgency and sometimes even incontinence. In addition, many UC patients suffer from concomitant extraintestinal inflammatory manifestations including skin manifestations like psoriasis, erythema nodosum or joint involvement such as spondylarthritis. For many years, steroids and conventional immunosuppressants such as azathioprine were the only treatment options available. Twenty years ago, the approval of the first anti-TNF antibody, Infliximab, marked a significant turning point in IBD therapy. Despite the continuous progress in drug therapy, the rates of primary and/or secondary treatment failure are still considerable. With this in mind, a large number of additional substances have been developed and approved for the treatment of UC in the recent years. In addition to TNF antibodies and their biosimilars, the anti-integrin vedolizumab, various Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors, an interleukin (IL)-12/-23p40 antibody, various IL-23p19 antibodies and sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor (S1PR) modulators have broadened the therapeutic landscape and found their way into the clinical treatment of UC patients. In this article we will discuss case-based decision paths for the selection of fitting anti-inflammatory treatments in UC patients and summarize the principles of the different therapeutic strategies for UC.