• Adhiyaman V, Vaishnavi A, Froese S 2001 Drug points: hypersensitivity reaction to balsalazide. BMJ 323: 489. *

• Baker DE 2005 Safety of balsalazide therapy in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Rev. Gastroenterol. Disord. 5: 135-141.

• Baker DE, Kane S 2004 The short- and long-term safety of 5-aminosalicylate products in the treatment of ulcerative colitis. Rev. Gastroenterol. Disord. 4: 86-91. *

• Chapman TM, Plosker GL, Figgitt DP 2006 VSL#3 probiotic mixture: a review of its use in chronic inflammatory bowel diseases. Drugs 66: 1371-1387.

• Chapman TM, Plosker GL, Figgitt DP 2007 Spotlight on VSL#3 probiotic mixture in chronic inflammatory bowel diseases. BioDrugs 21: 61-63.

• Cohen RD 2003 The mesalamine wars heat up-enter balsalazide. Gastroenterology 124: 574-575. *

• Cohen RD 2002 Evolving medical therapies for ulcerative colitis. Curr. Gastroenterol. Rep. 4: 497-505.

• Dubinsky MC, Fleshner PP 2003 Treatment of Crohn's disease of inflammatory, stenotic, and fistulizing phenotypes. Curr. Treat. Options Gastroenterol. 6: 183-200.

• Edmond LM, Hopkins MJ, Magee EA, Cummings JH 2003 The effect of 5-aminosalicylic acid-containing drugs on sulfide production by sulfate-reducing and amino acid-fermenting bacteria. Inflamm. Bowel Dis. 9: 10-17. *

• Giaffer MH, O'Brien CJ, Holdsworth CD 1992 Clinical tolerance to three 5-aminosalicylic acid releasing preparations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease intolerant or allergic to sulphasalazine. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 6: 51-59.

• Green JR, Gibson JA, Kerr GD, Swarbrick ET, Lobo AJ, Holdsworth CD, Crowe JP, Schofield KJ, Taylor MD 1998 Maintenance of remission of ulcerative colitis: a comparison between balsalazide 3 g daily and mesalazine 1.2 g daily over 12 months. ABACUS Investigator group. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 12: 1207-1216. *

• Green JR, Lobo AJ, Holdsworth CD, Leicester RJ, Gibson JA, Kerr GD, Hodgson HJ, Parkins KJ, Taylor MD 1998 Balsalazide is more effective and better tolerated than mesalamine in the treatment of acute ulcerative colitis. The Abacus Investigator Group. Gastroenterology 114: 15-22. *

• Green JR, Mansfield JC, Gibson JA, Kerr GD, Thornton PC 2002 A double-blind comparison of balsalazide, 6.75 g daily, and sulfasalazine, 3 g daily, in patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed active ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 16: 61-68. *

• Green JR, Swan CH, Gibson JA, Kerr GD, Swarbrick ET, Thornton PC 2004 Patient-led variable dosing with balsalazide as long-term therapy for maintenance in ulcerative colitis: a 3-year prospective observational study. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 19: 435-442. *

• Hanauer SB 2006 Review article: high-dose aminosalicylates to induce and maintain remissions in ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 24 Suppl. 3: 37-40. *

• Jahraus CD, Bettenhausen D, Malik U, Sellitti M, St Clair WH 2005 Prevention of acute radiation-induced proctosigmoiditis by balsalazide: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial in prostate cancer patients. Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. 63: 1483-1487.

• Kane SV, Bjorkman DJ 2003 The efficacy of oral 5-ASAs in the treatment of active ulcerative colitis: a systematic review. Rev. Gastroenterol. Disord. 3: 210-218. *

• Kles KA, Vavricka SR, Turner JR, Musch MW, Hanauer SB, Chang EB 2005 Comparative analysis of the in vitro prosecretory effects of balsalazide, sulfasalazine, olsalazine, and mesalamine in rabbit distal ileum. Inflamm. Bowel Dis. 11: 253-257. *

• Klotz U 2005 Colonic targeting of aminosalicylates for the treatment of ulcerative colitis. Dig. Liver Dis. 37: 381-388.

• Klotz U, Schwab M 2005 Topical delivery of therapeutic agents in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 57: 267-279. *

• Kruis W, Schreiber S, Theuer D, Brandes JW, Schutz E, Howaldt S, Krakamp B, Hamling J, Monnikes H, Koop I, Stolte M, Pallant D, Ewald U 2001 Low dose balsalazide (1.5 g twice daily) and mesalazine (0.5 g three times daily) maintained remission of ulcerative colitis but high dose balsalazide (3.0 g twice daily) was superior in preventing relapses. Gut 49: 783-789. *

• Kung SJ, Choudhary C, McGeady SJ, Cohn JR 2006 Lack of cross-reactivity between 5-aminosalicylic acid-based drugs: a case report and review of the literature. Ann. Allergy Asthma Immunol. 97: 284-287.

• Lakatos PL, Lakatos L 2008 Once daily 5-aminosalicylic acid for the treatment of ulcerative colitis; are we there yet? Pharmacol. Res. Aug 28 [Epub ahead of print]. *

• Levine DS, Riff DS, Pruitt R, Wruble L, Koval G, Sales D, Bell JK, Johnson LK 2002 A randomized, double blind, dose-response comparison of balsalazide (6.75 g), balsalazide (2.25 g), and mesalamine (2.4 g) in the treatment of active, mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 97: 1398-1407. *

• Loftus EV, Kane SV, Bjorkman D 2004 Short-term adverse effects of 5-aminosalicylic acid agents in the treatment of ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 19: 179-189. *

• Lowry PW, Franklin CL, Weaver AL, Szumlanski CL, Mays DC, Loftus EV, Tremaine WJ, Lipsky JJ, Weinshilboum RM, Sandborn WJ 2001 Leucopenia resulting from a drug interaction between azathioprine or 6-mercaptopurine and mesalamine, sulphasalazine, or balsalazide. Gut 49: 656-664. *

• Mackowiak JI 2006 A two-stage decision analysis to assess the cost of 5-aminosalicylic acid failure and the economics of balsalazide versus mesalamine in the treatment of ulcerative colitis. Manag. Care Interface 19: 39-46, 56.

• Mansfield JC, Giaffer MH, Cann PA, McKenna D, Thornton PC, Holdsworth CD 2002 A double-blind comparison of balsalazide, 6.75 g, and sulfasalazine, 3 g, as sole therapy in the management of ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 16: 69-77. *

• Masson S, Nylander D, Mansfield JC 2005 How important is onset of action in ulcerative colitis therapy? Drugs 65: 2069-2083.

• McIntyre PB, Rodrigues CA, Lennard-Jones JE, Barrison IG, Walker JG, Baron JH, Thornton PC 1988 Balsalazide in the maintenance treatment of patients with ulcerative colitis, a double-blind comparison with sulphasalazine. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 2: 237-243.

• Muijsers RB, Goa KL 2002 Balsalazide: a review of its therapeutic use in mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis. Drugs 62: 1689-1705.

• Mutlu EA, Farhadi A, Keshavarzian A 2002 New developments in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Expert Opin. Investig. Drugs 11: 365-385.

• Nikfar S, Rahimi R, Rezaie A, Abdollahi M 2008 A meta-analysis of the efficacy of sulfasalazine in comparison with 5-aminosalicylates in the induction of improvement and maintenance of remission in patients with ulcerative colitis. Dig. Dis. Sci. Sep 4 [Epub ahead of print]. *

• Nugent SG, Kumar D, Rampton DS, Evans DF 2001 Intestinal luminal pH in inflammatory bowel disease: possible determinants and implications for therapy with aminosalicylates and other drugs. Gut 48: 571-577. *

• Pai S, Mehta R, Rao G 2005 Thyrotoxicosis co-existing with ulcerative colitis. Indian J. Gastroenterol. 24: 263-264. *

• Pardi DS, Loftus EV Jr, Camilleri M 2002 Treatment of inflammatory bowel disease in the elderly: an update. Drugs Aging 19: 355-363.

• Prakash A, Spencer CM 1998 Balsalazide. Drugs 56: 83-89.

• Pruitt R, Hanson J, Safdi M, Wruble L, Hardi R, Johanson J, Koval G, Riff D, Winston B, Cross A, Doty P, Johnson LK 2002 Balsalazide is superior to mesalamine in the time to improvement of signs and symptoms of acute mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 97: 3078-3086. *

• Qureshi AI, Cohen RD 2005 Mesalamine delivery systems: do they really make much difference? Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 57: 281-302. *

• Ragunath K, Williams JG 2001 Review article: balsalazide therapy in ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 15: 1549-1554. *

• Rahimi R, Nikfar S, Rezaie A, Abdollahi M 2008 Comparison of mesalazine and balsalazide in induction and maintenance of remission in patients with ulcerative colitis: a meta-analysis. Dig. Dis. Sci. Aug 6 [Epub ahead of print]. *

• Rahimi R, Nikfar S, Rezaie A, Abdollahi M 2008 Pregnancy outcome in women with inflammatory bowel disease following exposure to 5-aminosalicylic acid drugs: a meta-analysis. Reprod. Toxicol. 25: 271-275.

• Robertson E, Austin D, Jamieson N, Hogg KJ 2007 Balsalazide-induced myocarditis. Int. J. Cardiol. Sep 20 [Epub ahead of print].

• Sandborn WJ 2006 Treatment of ulcerative colitis with oral mesalamine: advances in drug formulation, efficacy expectations and dose response, compliance, and chemoprevention. Rev. Gastroenterol. Disord. 6: 97-105.

• Sandborn WJ, Hanauer SB 2003 Systematic review: the pharmacokinetic profiles of oral mesalazine formulations and mesalazine pro-drugs used in the management of ulcerative colitis. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 17: 29-42. *

• Sandborn WJ, Hanauer SB, Buch A 2004 Comparative pharmacokinetics of equimolar doses of 5-aminosalicylate administered as oral mesalamine (Asacol) and balsalazide: a randomized, single-dose, crossover study in healthy volunteers. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 19: 1089-1098. *

• Schroeder KW 2002 Role of mesalazine in acute and long-term treatment of ulcerative colitis and its complications. Scand. J. Gastroenterol. Suppl. 236: 42-47. *

• Simmonds NJ, Millar AD, Blake DR, Rampton DS 1999 Antioxidant effects of aminosalicylates and potential new drugs for inflammatory bowel disease: assessment in cell-free systems and inflamed human colorectal biopsies. Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. 13: 363-372. *

• Tursi A, Brandimarte G, Giorgetti GM, Elisei W, Aiello F 2007 Balsalazide and/or high-potency probiotic mixture (VSL#3) in maintaining remission after attack of acute, uncomplicated diverticulitis of the colon. Int. J. Colorectal Dis. 22: 1103-1108. *

• Tursi A, Brandimarte G, Giorgetti GM, Forti G, Modeo ME, Gigliobianco A 2004 Low-dose balsalazide plus a high-potency probiotic preparation is more effective than balsalazide alone or mesalazine in the treatment of acute mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis. Med. Sci. Monit. 10: PI126-PI131.

• van Staa TP, Card TR, Leufkens HG, Logan RF 2005 5-Aminosalicylate use and colorectal cancer risk in inflammatory bowel disease: a large epidemiological study. Gut 54: 1573-1578. *

• Verzijl JM, van Bodegraven AA 2003 Mesalazine - still a first-line therapy. European Pharmacotherapy, Business Briefing (http://bbriefings.com/pdf/26/ept032_r_26_verzil.pdf), pp. 1-7. *

Number of references = 52

www psc-literature.org