Intestinal stricture and obstruction are rare complications of ulcerative colitis (UC). Currently, there are only a few studies on the treatment of UC with intestinal stenosis, however there are no reports on the treatment of UC with benign intestinal stenosis with ustekinumab (UST).
A 22-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital due to a 3-year history of recurrent bloody mucous in stool with intermittent abdominal pain and distension developed in the past month. She was steroid-dependent and had developed a secondary loss of response to infliximab.
She was diagnosed with UC combined with incomplete intestinal obstruction due to stenosis. The stricture had a mixed pattern with both inflammatory and fibrotic components, with the former covering a larger section of the intestine.
The patient was given UST for 56 weeks.
The patient's symptoms subsided after treatment with UST. The ulcers healed, and the stenosis was reduced.
UST is effective against UC with benign intestinal stenosis. It is thought that UST inhibits the production of transforming growth factor-β and interleukin-17, leading to the suppression of myofibroblast proliferation, ultimately alleviating intestinal stenosis.