Su1292 The Long-Term Influence of Anti-TNF Agents on Hemoglobin Levels in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Abstract

Background and aim: Animal and human studies have shown that vitamin D is significantly implicated in the pathogenesis of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). Inflammation is also a known risk factor for anemia. Data examining the association between vitamin D levels and anemia in IBD are lacking. We conducted this 5-year prospective study to examine whether a low vitamin D status is associated with higher risk of anemia in IBD. Methods: Data for 964 IBD subjects followed over 5 years at our center were prospectively collected and analyzed. Demographics, smoking status, vitamin D levels, hemoglobin levels, disease location, distribution, and duration, as well as use of medications including steroids, immunemodulators, and vitamin D were recorded. Low vitamin D levels were defined as <30 ng/ ml. Hemoglobin cut-off levels for anemia were 12 ng/ml and 13 ng/ml for females and males respectively. Adjusted odds ratios for anemia were calculated using logistic regression analysis model controlling for age, gender, disease type, location, and duration, use of steroids, immune-modulators, biologics, and vitamin D. Results: 17.3% of the cohort had anemia. The prevalence of low vitamin D status was significantly higher in subjects with anemia compared with subjects with normal hemoglobin (51.8% vs. 27.3%, p<0.0001). The crude odds ratio for anemia in vitamin D deficient subjects was 2.5 (p=0.008). The 2 study groups were similar with respect to distribution by age, gender, smoking status, disease type, duration, and location, and rates of ileo-cecal resection (Table 1). Similarly, the use of steroids, immune-modulators, anti-TNF therapy and vitamin D was similar between the 2