Role of sulphasalazine in the aetiology of folate deficiency in ulcerative colitis

Abstract

Only two (2.5%) of 80 outpatients with histologically proven ulcerative colitis had folate deficiency associated with anaemia or macrocytosis. Mean folate absorption, measured using 3μg/kg body weight of a tritium-labelled physiological folate derivative, 5-methyltetrahydroteroylglutamic acid, in six newly diagnosed patients was 76.7% (normal > 95%) but fell to 69.4% after three months' treatment with sulphasalazine. Mean difference in individual patients was 7.5% ± 5.2% (SD) (p < 0.02). Mean folate absorption in four patients with megaloblastic anaemia or macrocytosis which developed during treatment with sulphasalazine was 66.3%. This rose to 82.4% after the drug was stopped. Mean difference in individual patients was 16.6 ± 6.6% (SD) (p < 0.001). All patients who developed anaemia or macrocytosis with sulphasalazine had additional reasons for folate deficiency. These included coeliac disease, severe nutritional deficiencies, and haemolysis. It was concluded that sulphasalazine impairs folate absorption but this only becomes significant if other reasons for folate deficiency are also present.