Gastric Foveolar Hyperplastic Polyps in 2 Children With Short Bowel Syndrome on Long-Term Teduglutide

Abstract

The natural history of short bowel syndrome involves intestinal adaptation wherein the remnant small intestine undergoes histologic and anatomic changes aimed at increasing absorption. Teduglutide—a glucagon-like peptide 2 analog approved for pediatric use in 2019—stimulates this process by causing proliferation of intestinal epithelial cells resulting in increased villous height and crypt depth. Food and Drug Administration approval for pediatric patients followed safety and efficacy studies in children that were limited to 24-week duration. Pediatric-specific postmarketing studies evaluating long-term safety and efficacy are underway. Formation of colorectal polyps has been repeatedly observed in studies of adult patients on long-term teduglutide, including in individuals without endoscopic evidence of polyps before treatment initiation. Recent studies, however, suggest increased risk of small bowel hyperplastic and dysplastic polyp formation with long-term glucagon-like peptide 2 analog use. We report 2 cases of small bowel foveolar hyperplastic polyps found during surveillance endoscopies after 1 year of treatment with teduglutide.