TNF-alpha Inhibitors
Synthetics injectables
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Herbals
These drugs block TNF-alpha by an antibody-ligand binding mechanism, thus inhibiting the inflammatory cascade initiated by TNF-alpha. A benefit of treatment is their ability to possibly taper steroids, which can decrease further adverse effects (Present DH et al, 1999Present DH, Rutgeerts P, , et al. Infliximab for the treatment of fistulas in patients with Crohn's disease. N Engl J Med. 1999;340(18):1398-405.; Targan SR et al, 1997Targan SR, Hanauer SB, et al. A short-term study of chimeric monoclonal antibody cA2 to tumor necrosis factor alpha for Crohn's disease. Crohn's Disease cA2 Study Group. N Engl J Med. Oct 9 1997;337(15):1029-35; Krebs S et al. 2010Krebs S, Omer TN, Omer B. Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) suppresses tumour necrosis factor alpha and accelerates healing in patients with Crohn's disease - A controlled clinical trial.2010: 17(5), 305-309; Omer B et al 2007Omer B, Krebs S, Omer H, Noor TO. Steroid-sparing effect of wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) in Crohn's disease: a double-blind placebo-controlled study. Phytomed. 2007;14:87-95)
The TNF blockers used for Crohn's disease are Infliximab (Remicade), Adalimumab (Humira), and Certolizumab (Cimzia) and the herbal supplement SedaCrohn, a thujone-free wormwood preparation.