Drug reference
certolizumab pegol
TNFα inhibitor · Immunosuppressant
TNFα inhibitorImmunosuppressant
CDSCO approved
EXCRETION
—
not curated
INTERACTIONS
—
none in our sources
PREGNANCY
—
not curated
Mechanism
Humanized pegylated antibody specific to TNFα. Pegylation of the Fab’ fragment provides sustained activity.
Indications
adults with crohn’s diseaserheumatoid arthritisactive psoriatic arthritisactive ankylosing spondylitismoderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease (in patients who have responded poorly to conventional therapies)induction and maintenance of remission in adults with moderate-to-severe Crohn’s diseaseuseful for patients for whom infliximab has lost efficacy or caused adverse reactions
Dosing
- Adult
- 200 mg lyophilized powder or 200 mg/ml prefilled sterile injections for subcutaneous administration
Pharmacokinetics
Half-life
About 2 weeks.
Bioavailability
About 80% when given subcutaneously.
Excretion
Polyethylene glycol moiety is cleared by urinary excretion.
Side effects
Serious
- increased risk of serious infections
- increased risk of lymphoma and other malignancies
- infection (from immunosuppression, increased with steroids)
- reactivation of tuberculosis
- opportunistic infections with subsequent dissemination
- increased incidence of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (causal role not established)
- drug-induced lupus
- multiple sclerosis–like syndrome
- nonmelanoma skin cancer
Related guidelines
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Textbook-sourced·Sources: Goodman & Gilman 14e·Updated: 2026-05-10