MS: Rituximab beneficial for long term treatment in a real-world setting

Key clinical point: Real-world data demonstrates effectiveness of rituximab in reducing disease activity and maintaining long-term treatment in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Major finding: The odds for experiencing a clinical relapse, contrast-enhancing lesions (CEL), and/or new T2 lesions were greater with fingolimod  (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 3.17; P less than .001)  and dimethyl fumarate (aOR, 2.68; P less than .001) compared with rituximab. Similarly, natalizimab vs rituximab showed higher odds for disease activity (aOR, 1.36; P = 0.216). The odds for discontinuation were higher for fingolimod (aOR, 2.02; P = .005) and dimethyl fumarate (aOR, 3.27; P less than .001) compared with rituximab.

Study details: A retrospective real-world study included MS patients who were initiated on rituximab (n = 182), natalizumab (n = 451), fingolimod (n = 271) or dimethyl fumarate (n = 342) and followed for 2 years.

Disclosures: This study received no funding. KV Nair, JR Corboy, T Vollmer and E Alvarez reported relationships with multiple pharmaceutical companies.

Citation: Vollmer BL et al. Ann Clin Transl Neurol. 2020 Aug 6. doi: 10.1002/acn3.51111.