Infections in Children and Adolescents With Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease Treated With Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Inhibitors: Systematic Review of the Literature

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibitors are increasingly administered to children and adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (pIBD). Adult studies indicate that TNF-alpha inhibitors lead to an increased risk of serious infections compared to other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. We report herein a systematic literature review detailing the epidemiology and types of infections reported in children with JIA and pIBD treated with TNF-alpha inhibitors. The most frequently reported infections were mild and characterized as viral in etiology. Severe bacterial and fungal infections also occurred, but were less common and possibly associated with intrinsic risk factors and concurrent immunosuppressive therapy. Few pediatric patients developed Mycobacterium tuberculosis, likely due to effective screening. There were 8 infectious fatalities in children treated with TNF-alpha inhibitors. Overall, although rare, serious infections occur in immunocompromised children and adolescents with JIA and pIBD receiving TNF-alpha inhibitors.