SynthesisPloS one2013
Rituximab in relapsing and progressive forms of multiple sclerosis: a systematic review.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 102 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rituximab for people with multiple sclerosis.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Rituximab for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2013Pooled it
- Trial
- HBV Serologic Testing Practices and Reactivation Outcomes Before Rituximab Initiation: A Retrospective Observational Study at an Academic Tertiary Care Centre.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- White Blood Cells in Neurodegenerative Diseases in the Context of Neuroinflammation.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Review
- Efficacy of rituximab in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis: Insights from magnetic resonance imaging and disability assessments.Journal of research in medical sciences : the official journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences · 2025Article
- Therapeutic Plasma Exchange and Multiple Sclerosis Dysregulations: Focus on the Removal of Pathogenic Circulatory Factors and Altering Nerve Growth Factor and Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Plasma Levels.Current issues in molecular biology · 2023Review
- Germplasm resources and secondary metabolism regulation in Reishi mushroom (Chinese herbal medicines · 2023Review
- Article
- Dual Role of B Cells in Multiple Sclerosis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Ocrevus reduces TH40 cells, a biomarker of systemic inflammation, in relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS) and in progressive multiple sclerosis (PMS).Journal of neuroimmunology · 2023Article
- Treatment of multiple sclerosis with rituximab: A Spanish multicenter experience.Frontiers in neurology · 2023Article
- IgG-Based Bispecific Anti-CD95 Antibodies for the Treatment of B Cell-Derived Malignancies and Autoimmune Diseases.Cancers · 2022Article
- Efficacy and safety of rituximab in patients with multiple sclerosis: An observational study at a tertiary center in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.Neurosciences (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) · 2022Observational
- Effect of Rituximab on the cognitive impairment in patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.Caspian journal of internal medicine · 2022Article
- Hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry identifies the dominant paratope in CD20 antigen binding to the NCD1.2 monoclonal antibody.The Biochemical journal · 2021Article
- Deciphering Multiple Sclerosis Progression.Frontiers in neurology · 2021Review
- Effect of Rituximab on Expanded Disability Status Scale and Relapse Rate in Multiple Sclerosis Patients.Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN · 2020Article
- Evaluation of safety of rituximab in patients with multiple sclerosis: A retrograde study.Current journal of neurology · 2020Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundRituximab is an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody approved for non Hodgkin lymphoma and rheumatoid arthritis. It is being considered for the treatment of MS.
objectivesTo evaluate the efficacy and safety of rituximab for MS treatment. DATA COLLECTION: Studies were selected if they were clinical trials, irrespective of the dosage or combination therapies. MAIN
resultsFour studies with a total of 599 patients were included. One assessed the efficacy of rituximab for primary progressive (PP) MS while the other three focused on relapsing-remitting (RR) MS. In the PPMS study, rituximab delayed time to confirmed disease progression (CDP) in pre-planned sub-group analyses. The increase in T2 lesion volume was lower in the rituximab group at week 96 compared with placebo. For the RRMS studies, an open-label phase I study found that rituximab reduced the annualized relapse rate to 0.25 from pre-therapy baseline to week 24, while in the randomized placebo-controlled phase II trial, annualized relapse rates were 0.37 in the rituximab group and 0.84 in the placebo group (p = 0.04) at week 24. Rituximab dramatically reduced the number of gadolinium-enhancing lesions on brain MRI scans for both RRMS studies. Off-label rituximab as an add-on therapy in patients with breakthrough disease on first-line agents was associated with an 88% reduction when comparing the mean number of gadolinium-enhancing lesions prior to and after the treatment. Although frequent adverse events classified as mild or moderate occurred in up to 77% of the patients, there were no grade 4 infusion-related adverse events. AUTHOR’S
conclusionDespite the frequent mild/moderate adverse events related to the drug, rituximab appears overall safe for up to 2 years of therapy and has a substantial impact on the inflammatory disease activity (clinical and/or radiological) of RRMS. The effect of rituximab on disease progression in PPMS appears to be marginal.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.