Prognostic Factors and Outcome Measures After Rituximab Therapy in Central Nervous System Vasculitis: A Systematic Review.

Given the growing popularity of Rituximab (Rmab) treatment as a potential substitute for cyclophosphamide, we conducted this review to determine aspects related to Rmab therapy in central nervous system vasculitis (CNSV) patients, aiming to establish both the beneficial and detrimental consequences of Rmab while providing clinical guidance for managing patients' conditions. This systematic review was prepared following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were utilized to investigate Rmab treatment in CNSV from January 2015 to May 2024. The research question was structured using the Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome, and Study Design (PICOS) criteria. Case series with only three or more unique cases, prospective or retrospective non-randomized studies, and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were addressed. The initial evaluations were performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. After removing duplicate entries, 177 publications were obtained, and 41 were chosen for full-text assessment. The review then incorporated information gathered from 27 studies, including 4 case series, 15 non-randomized cohorts, and 8 RCTs. Rmab is generally regarded as effective for CNSV therapy. Given its success, induction Rmab therapy is now frequently employed as maintenance therapy for CNSV patients. Rmab is a viable option for the induction of remission and maintenance treatment, with a successful reduction in relapse rates.

Informations de copyright

Copyright © 2024, Alharthi et al.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.