Lupus & antiphospholipid syndrome
Rituximab as add-on therapy in patients with resistant lupus nephritis who have failed induction or maintenance therapy with other agents: A real-world experience from a single center in Mumbai
Authors' conclusion
Re-RTX demonstrated efficacy and safety as an induction therapy for resistant LN. However, the response waned after 1 year, underscoring the need for optimized maintenance therapy.
Study context
- Population
- Patients with resistant lupus nephritis (LN) (failed initial induction therapy or severe relapse after remission), single center in Mumbai
- Participants
- 24 patients
- Outcome
- KDIGO criteria outcomes: renal response (complete and partial), disease progression, relapses and infections
Methodological detailssingle-centre, real-world
- Single-centre
- Real-world
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Renal response · 6 months
| Group | Value | Complete response | Partial response |
|---|---|---|---|
| Re-RTX | 91.7% | 20.8% | 70.8% |
Re-RTX
Value91.7%
Complete response20.8%
Partial response70.8%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Renal response (complete and partial) · 12 months
- Maintained renal response
- 58.3%
- Complete response
- 25%
- Partial response
- 33.3%
Relapse · within a year
- Approximately one-third of patients relapsed within a year
RTX maintenance, Regimen-1 (500 mg every 6 months)
- Partial response
- 43% (3/7)
- Relapse
- 57% (4/7)
- Fourteen patients (58.3%) continued RTX maintenance therapy with two different treatment regimens
RTX maintenance, Regimen 2 (1 g dose per year) · 6 months
- Complete response
- 28.5% (2/7)
- Partial response
- 71.5% (5/7)
- No relapses at 6 months
Adverse renal outcomes (progression to advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) or end-stage renal disease (ESRD)) · median follow-up of 29 months
- Adverse renal outcomes
- 29.16%
Safety
| Outcome | Values |
|---|---|
| Infection prevalenceComparable to the existing data | Re-RTX 16% |
Original publication
Rituximab as add-on therapy in patients with resistant lupus nephritis who have failed induction or maintenance therapy with other agents: A real-world experience from a single center in Mumbai. Lupus. Published 4 December 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →