Exclusive Enteral Nutrition in Patients With Ileocaecal Crohn's Disease

Exclusive Enteral Nutrition in Patients With Ileocaecal Crohn's Disease (XENIC): an Open-label, Multicenter, Prospective, Randomized Clinical Trial

Inflammatory bowel diseases are chronic and progressive entities, triggered by exposure to environmental factors in individuals with a genetic background.

One of the most common environmental factors is the type of diet which is a key influencer on pathogenesis. Nutrients alter the intestinal microbiota, thus changing the intestinal permeability. The Western-type diet encompasses sugar, fat, and protein-rich products that have some deleterious effects on the intestinal microbiome compared to the plant-based Mediterranean-type diet.

Based on this fact, diet-based therapeutic efforts have been used extensively in pediatric Crohn's disease patients and there is strong evidence that exclusive enteral nutrition (EEN) is as effective as corticosteroids to induce both clinical and endoscopic remission but this treatment strategy is underutilized in adults.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Male and female subjects, aged between 18-75 years with a diagnosis of ileocolonic Crohn's disease (CD) confirmed using endoscopy and/or imaging technology at most 3 months prior.
• Participant or his/her legal representative have voluntarily signed and dated an informed consent approved by and compliant with the requirements of this study protocol which has been approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)/Independent Ethics Committee (IEC) Adequate cardiac, renal, and hepatic function as determined by the Principal Investigator and demonstrated by Screening laboratory evaluations, questionnaires, and physical examination results that do not indicate an abnormal clinical condition that would place the participant at undue risk preclude participation in the study.
• Participant must be able to orally administer study medication/nutrient or have a designee or Healthcare Professional who can assist

Exclusion Criteria:

• Previous or current use of any medication for Crohn's disease such as biologics, immunomodulators (e.g., methotrexate, azathioprine, 6-mercaptopurine, JAK inhibitor, alpha-integrin), and corticosteroids
• Presence of complications (Fistula, abscess, fibrotic disease, imminent risk of surgery)
• Participants with a poorly controlled medical condition such as uncontrolled diabetes with a documented history of recurrent infections, unstable ischemic heart disease, moderate to severe congestive heart failure (New York Heart Association [NYHA] class III or IV), recent cerebrovascular accident, and any other condition which, in the opinion of the Investigator or the sponsor, would put the participant at risk by participation in the protocol
• Participants with positive C. difficile stool assay at screening.
• Rescue therapy with steroids, depending on the severity of the disease will be initiated for patients in the EEN group who do not respond clinically and will be excluded from the study. If the number of clinically unresponsive patients was greater than 25% of the total EEN population, the study will be stopped. Criteria for clinical response are described in the "Outcome Measures" section.