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Efficacy and safety of rituximab therapy in patients with pemphigus vulgaris: first report from Turkey
Author(s) -
Uzun Soner,
Bilgiç Temel Aslı,
Akman Karakaş Ayşe,
Ergün Erkan,
Özkesici Birgül,
Eskiocak Ali Haydar,
Erat Ayşegül,
Uğurlu Nilay,
Nazlım Berna,
Koç Saliha,
Bozkurt Selen,
Dicle Özlem,
Alpsoy Erkan,
Yılmaz Ertan
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/ijd.13400
Subject(s) - rituximab , medicine , pemphigus vulgaris , adverse effect , adjuvant , adjuvant therapy , cd20 , pemphigus , maintenance therapy , gastroenterology , surgery , immunology , chemotherapy , lymphoma
Background Pemphigus vulgaris ( PV ) is a severe, chronic, and potentially life‐threatening autoimmune blistering disease that affects the skin and mucous membranes. Rituximab is a monoclonal anti‐ CD 20 antibody which has been used increasingly in the therapy of PV . Methods The present study sought to test the efficacy and safety of rituximab as an adjuvant therapy by retrospective analysis of clinical and immunological data for 29 patients with PV who were treated with rituximab between 2010 and 2015. Response to therapy, duration of clinical remission, serology of the response, and adverse effects of rituximab were evaluated. Results The mean ± standard deviation ( SD ) follow‐up time was 17.48 ± 13.18 months. In all patients, findings showed either a decrease in antibody titers or that antibodies were completely undetectable after therapy. Rituximab use resulted in a significant reduction in steroid dosage during follow‐up. At the end of the follow‐up period, 26 patients (96.2%) had achieved complete remission with or without therapy (one patient had no follow‐up and one patient had died, most probably as the result of a thromboembolic event). In 44.4% of patients, a clinical relapse occurred after a mean ± SD period of 13.1 ± 4.7 months after the initiation of rituximab therapy. Relapses were managed with additional infusions of rituximab. Conclusions Rituximab is a beneficial and relatively safe adjuvant treatment for PV that facilitates prolonged clinical remission and has a significant steroid‐sparing effect.