Question Ulcerative Colitis and diving

[mattfish]

I have ulcerative colitis (an autoimmune disorder/disease causing inflammation of the colon, for those who don’t know) which I’ve kept under control with mesalamine.

Unfortunately, the efficacy of the mesalamine is wearing off (pretty common with long term use) and I’ll likely need to switch to a biologic like Entivio or Zeposia. Are any of you aware of any risks specific to diving with these medications? I haven’t been able to find anything online and my gastroenterologist doesn’t know of anything related to diving.

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[rsingler]

@Duke Dive Medicine

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

I have ulcerative colitis (an autoimmune disorder/disease causing inflammation of the colon, for those who don’t know) which I’ve kept under control with mesalamine.

Unfortunately, the efficacy of the mesalamine is wearing off (pretty common with long term use) and I’ll likely need to switch to a biologic like Entivio or Zeposia. Are any of you aware of any risks specific to diving with these medications? I haven’t been able to find anything online and my gastroenterologist doesn’t know of anything related to diving.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Both of these drugs are immunosuppressants, so you would be at increased risk for infection if you were exposed to a waterborne pathogen. According to the package insert, Zeposia / ozanimod can also lead to a decrease lung vital capacity, though it's not clear why this happens.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[mattfish]

Thanks for the info! I knew about the increased risk of infections, but the lung capacity is new to me. That package insert is great! I’ll try and look for those as I’m researching a medication. So much info online makes it hard to distinguish the facts from the marketing