PMID- 34017301
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20210523
IS  - 1664-2295 (Print)
IS  - 1664-2295 (Electronic)
IS  - 1664-2295 (Linking)
VI  - 12
DP  - 2021
TI  - Efficacy of Low-Dose Rituximab on Neuromyelitis Optica-Associated Optic Neuritis.
PG  - 637932
LID - 10.3389/fneur.2021.637932 [doi]
LID - 637932
AB  - Purpose: To prospectively investigate the efficacy and tolerance of low-dose 
      rituximab (RTX) for the treatment of neuromyelitis optica-associated optic 
      neuritis (NMO-ON). Methods: Optic Neuritis patients with seropositive aquaporin 
      4-antibody (AQP4-Ab) were diagnosed with NMO-ON and recruited for treatment with 
      low-dose RTX (100 mg (*) 4 infusions) and were then followed monthly for a 
      minimum of 3 months. Reinfusion of 100 mg RTX was given when the CD19+ B 
      lymphocyte frequency was elevated to above 1%. The serum AQP4-Ab level was tested 
      by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: A total of 43 NMO-ON 
      patients (1 male/42 female, 75 involved eyes) were included in this study. CD19+ 
      B cell clearance in the peripheral blood was induced in 97.7% of patients after 
      induction treatment. A significant decrease in serum AQP4-Ab concentration was 
      observed after induction treatment (P = 0.0123). The maintenance time of B cell 
      clearance was 5.2 +/- 2.25 months. The relapse-free rate was 92.3% in patients 
      followed-up for over 12 months, and patients with non-organ-specific autoimmune 
      antibodies tended to relapse within 6 months. A total of 96.2% of patients had 
      stable or improved vision, and a decrease in the average expanded disability 
      status scale (EDSS) score was found. Structural alterations revealed by optic 
      coherence tomography were observed in both ON and unaffected eyes. The rates of 
      infusion-related reactions and long-term adverse events (AEs) were 18.6 and 
      23.1%, respectively. No severe AEs was observed. Conclusions: Low-dose rituximab 
      is efficient and well-tolerated in treating NMO-ON.
CI  - Copyright (c) 2021 Zhao, Zhou, Xu, Dai and Wei.
FAU - Zhao, Shuo
AU  - Zhao S
AD  - Department of Ophthalmology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, 
      Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 
      China.
FAU - Zhou, Huanfen
AU  - Zhou H
AD  - Department of Neuro-Ophthalmology, The Chinese People's Liberation Army General 
      Hospital, Beijing, China.
FAU - Xu, Quangang
AU  - Xu Q
AD  - Department of Neuro-Ophthalmology, The Chinese People's Liberation Army General 
      Hospital, Beijing, China.
FAU - Dai, Hong
AU  - Dai H
AD  - Department of Ophthalmology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, 
      Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 
      China.
FAU - Wei, Shihui
AU  - Wei S
AD  - Department of Neuro-Ophthalmology, The Chinese People's Liberation Army General 
      Hospital, Beijing, China.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20210504
PL  - Switzerland
TA  - Front Neurol
JT  - Frontiers in neurology
JID - 101546899
PMC - PMC8129159
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - aquaporin 4 antibody
OT  - immunosuppression
OT  - neuromyelitis optica
OT  - optic neuritis
OT  - rituximab
COIS- The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any 
      commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential 
      conflict of interest.
EDAT- 2021/05/22 06:00
MHDA- 2021/05/22 06:01
PMCR- 2021/05/04
CRDT- 2021/05/21 06:31
PHST- 2020/12/04 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2021/04/08 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2021/05/21 06:31 [entrez]
PHST- 2021/05/22 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2021/05/22 06:01 [medline]
PHST- 2021/05/04 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - 10.3389/fneur.2021.637932 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Front Neurol. 2021 May 4;12:637932. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2021.637932. eCollection 
      2021.