Current approaches to managing inflammatory bowel disease in the elderly – A literature review

Maciej Zamorski; Agata Stebel; Alicja Gładysz

doi:10.18794/aams/211013

2026 vol. 80

CC BY-SA 4.0

Get citation

Current approaches to managing inflammatory bowel disease in the elderly – A literature review

Maciej Zamorski ¹

Agata Stebel ¹

Alicja Gładysz ¹

More details

Hide details

Katedra i Klinika Gastroenterologii, Hepatologii i Chorób Wewnętrznych, Uniwersytet Medyczny im. Piastów Śląskich we Wrocławiu / Department and Clinic of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Internal Medicine, Wroclaw Medical University, Poland

These authors had equal contribution to this work

Corresponding author

Agata Stebel

Katedra i Klinika Gastroenterologii, Hepatologii i Chorób Wewnętrznych, Uniwersytet Medyczny im. Piastów Śląskich we Wrocławiu, ul. Borowska 213, 50-556 Wrocław

Ann. Acad. Med. Siles. 2026;80:155-165

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18794/aams/211013

Article (PDF, 781.03 kB)

References (68)

KEYWORDS

inflammatory bowel disease

TOPICS

ABSTRACT

Older adults (i.e., aged 65 years and older) suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are a growing group of patients. This may be attributed to the aging of the population and the rising incidence of elderly-onset (i.e., at the age of 65 years or older) IBD. Treatment of this patient population is particularly challenging due to age-related physiological changes and the high prevalence of comorbidities. The purpose of this review is to examine these additional difficulties and verify which types of drugs are best suited for therapy in elderly patients with IBD. Relevant articles were identified through a targeted search of the databases PubMed, Embase, and Scopus to evaluate the efficacy and safety profile of various therapeutic agents used in the treatment of IBD: 5-aminosalicylates (5-ASAs), corticosteroids, thiopurines, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors, risankizumab, ustekinumab, vedolizumab, and Janus activated kinase (JAK) inhibitors. Considering their safety and efficacy profiles, 5-ASAs, vedolizumab, and ustekinumab emerged as the most favorable options. Steroids remain essential in managing moderate to severe flare-ups. Furthermore, risankizumab shows promise as a therapeutic agent; however, additional research is necessary to thoroughly evaluate its utility. In contrast, thiopurines, TNF-α inhibitors, and JAK inhibitors exhibited less favorable outcomes in both safety and efficacy. The treatment of elderly patients with IBD must consider the physiological changes associated with aging and the high prevalence of comorbidities, which often complicate therapeutic decision-making. Appropriate selection of therapy may enhance treatment efficacy and improve patients’ quality of life.

FUNDING

No funding was received for this study.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Use of AI tools statement: During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used ChatGPT-4o for the purposes of superficial text editing. The authors have reviewed and edited the output and take full responsibility for the content of this publication.

REFERENCES (68)

Kofla-Dłubacz A, Pytrus T, Akutko K, Sputa-Grzegrzółka P, Piotrowska A, Dzięgiel P. Etiology of IBD–Is It Still a Mystery? Int J Mol Sci. 2022;23(20):12445. doi: 10.3390/ijms232012445.