Is the decision maker a key determinant of colchicine withdrawal success in paediatric heterozygous familial Mediterranean fever patients?
Authors' conclusion
Colchicine withdrawal under physician supervision and at older ages is associated with a lower risk of relapse and greater likelihood of maintaining drug-free remission.
Study context
- Population
- Paediatric familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) patients with a heterozygous Mediterranean fever (MEFV) mutation who stopped colchicine, tertiary rheumatology clinic, August 2016–February 2024of 1246 heterozygous
- Participants
- 87 patients
- Exposure
- Colchicine discontinuation by physician decision vs family/patient decision
- Physician decision (PD)n = 47
- Family/patient decision (FD)n = 40reference
- Outcome
- Sustained drug-free remission vs need for colchicine retreatment after discontinuation
Methodological detailssingle tertiary rheumatology clinic
- Single tertiary rheumatology clinic
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Drug-free remission maintained
P = 0.45
- Drug-free remission maintained overall
- 62 (71.3%)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Colchicine reinitiated · PD lower risk of reinitiating treatment
P = 0.046
Age at discontinuation
- Colchicine reinitiated — Colchicine reinitiated overall
- 25 (28.7%)
- Age at discontinuation — Older age at discontinuation associated with sustained remission
- p = 0.01
- Pre-discontinuation asymptomatic period · significantly longer in PD
- P < 0.01
Original publication
Is the decision maker a key determinant of colchicine withdrawal success in paediatric heterozygous familial Mediterranean fever patients? Scand J Rheumatol. Published 13 January 2026. doi:10.
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