A recent article (JPGN 2014; 59: 317-20) has shown that Neocate Nutra is a good alternative to splenda as a delivery vehicle for budesonide for children with eosinophilic esophagitis.

This retrospective review of 60 children treated with oral viscous budesonide (OVB) who used either splenda (n=46) or with Neocate Nutra (n=14).  With regard to budesonide, in patients less than 10 years, the dose was 1 mg/day and older children received 2 mg/day.  For splenda patients, 10 packets were used to create a slurry whereas with Neocate Nutra powder the amount was 2.5 cm3 per milligram of budesonide.  Followup endoscopy took place at least 10 weeks after the start of treatment.

Key findings:

• 13 of 14 Neocate Nutra patients achieved a histologic response (peak eosinophils <15/hpf) compared with 30 of 46 Splenda patients.
• Mean eosinophil count dropped from 62 to 9 for Neocate Nutra patients and from 59.5 to 25.5 for Splenda patients.

Limitations of study: small number, retrospective study.

Take-home message: Neocate Nutra is at least as effective as Splenda as mixture with budesonide.  In addition, many parents may prefer to avoid Splenda.

Related blog posts:

• Higher Doses of Topical Steroids for Eosinophilic Esophagitis …
• Eosinophilic Esophagitis Slide Set | gutsandgrowth
• Choosing topical therapy for EoE | gutsandgrowth