Common side effects of Biologics Drugs in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Introduction

What are biologics?

Biologics are a relatively new class of drugs that target the immune system to treat inflammatory bowel disease. They have been shown to be more effective than traditional drugs, but also have different side effect profile.

What are the common biologics medications?

Biologics comes in Intravenous and subcutaneous injectable form. There are new oral agents as well.

These are the commonly used biologics for IBD. You may click into each drugs to view it’s technical safety profile :

• Remicade/Infliximab
• Remsima ( Biosimilar Infliximab)
• Stelara/Ustekinumab
• Vedolizumab
• Humira

Side effects of biologics

Biologics are a class of drugs that target specific proteins in your body. This can help lower inflammation and treat chronic conditions like IBD. However, biologics have a few side effects that are common among users.

Common side effects of biologics can include:

• nausea
• diarrhea
• rashes or itching
• joint pain or stiffness
• fatigue, dizziness

Biologic drugs can have some side effects but these do not affect everyone who uses them.

Biologic drugs can have some side effects but these do not affect everyone who uses them.

If you are taking a biologic drug, there is a chance that you will experience some of the following side effects:

• Nausea and vomiting (30 to 40 percent)
• Diarrhea (20 to 30 percent)
• Headache (up to 15 percent)
• Fatigue or tiredness (up to 10 percent)

Conclusion

Biologic drugs can have some side effects but these do not affect everyone who uses them. If you are experiencing any of the common side effects listed above, it may be worth discussing your symptoms with our IBD Specialist before beginning treatment with biologics.