Thalidomide for angiodysplasia – pro

Angiodysplasias are the cause of GI bleeding in 3–6% of all patients and a common cause of beeeding in the elderly. Thalidomide has been reported in a number of case reports and case series to reduce the angiodysplasias and GI bleeding. However no prospective studies have been done. The drug is now in a clinical trial: Thalidomide Reduces Arteriovenous Malformation Related Gastrointestinal Bleeding, NCT00389935
The purpose of this study is to determine whether Thalidomide is effective in the treatment of arteriovenous malformations in the gastrointestinal tract. As such, the drug is not medically necessary.

Asher Korzets , Uzi Gafter , Avri Chagnac , Boris Zingerman , Valeriya Morduchovitz , and Yaacov Ori  Thalidomide: a treatment option for bleeding GI angiodysplasias in dialysed patients NDT Plus Advance Access published on October 1, 2008, DOI 10.1093/ndtplus/sfn070.
NDT Plus 1: 354-356.

Shurafa M, Kamboj G (2003). “Thalidomide for the treatment of bleeding angiodysplasias”. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 98 (1): 221–2.

Lebrin, Franck (2010) Thalidomide stimulates vessel maturation and reduces epistaxis in individuals with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia. Nature Medicine 16(4)

Kamalaporn, Patarapong (2009) Thalidomide for the treatment of chronic gastrointestinal bleeding from angiodysplasias: a case series : . European Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatology 21(12)

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