Patients with Ileal Pouch-Anal Anastomosis Have Decreased Bowel Frequency on Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist Therapy

Background: High bowel frequency after ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) causes significant symptom burden. We aimed to evaluate the impact of GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP1RAs) in this setting. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients with prior IPAA for ulcerative colitis who were treated with a GLP1RA (n=20). Daily bowel frequency at baseline and 12 weeks after GLP1RA initiation was assessed. We also assessed the proportion of patients achieving ≥30% reduction in bowel frequency and ≤8 bowel movements per day. Results: Median daily bowel frequency decreased from 9.0 (IQR, 6.0-12.5) at baseline to 6.0 (IQR, 5.0-8.1) at the 12-week follow-up (p<0.01). Overall, 7 of 20 patients achieved a ≥30% reduction in bowel frequency, and 15 of 20 had ≤8 bowel movements per day. Conclusion: In this retrospective cohort, we provide further evidence for the potential role of GLP1RAs in the management of high bowel frequency after IPAA.