Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab

Rheumatoid arthritis- (RA-) associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) is the extra-articular complication with most adverse impact on the quality of life and survival in RA patients. However, treatment options are limited and controlled studies are lacking. Here, we present the case of a 66-yea...

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Main Authors: Wolfgang Hartung, Judith Maier, Michael Pfeifer, Martin Fleck
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2012-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Immunology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/272303
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author Wolfgang Hartung
Judith Maier
Michael Pfeifer
Martin Fleck
author_facet Wolfgang Hartung
Judith Maier
Michael Pfeifer
Martin Fleck
author_sort Wolfgang Hartung
collection DOAJ
description Rheumatoid arthritis- (RA-) associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) is the extra-articular complication with most adverse impact on the quality of life and survival in RA patients. However, treatment options are limited and controlled studies are lacking. Here, we present the case of a 66-year-old patient suffering from severe RA-ILD, which has been successfully treated with Rituximab (RTX). After failure of conventional DMARD therapy, our patient showed sustained improvement of clinical pulmonary parameters as well as joint inflammation following B-cell depletion with RTX. The six-minute-walk test improved from 380 meters to 536 meters and the forced vital capacity from 2.49 liters to 3.49. The disease activity score could be reduced from 7.7 to 2.8. Therefore, RTX might be considered as an alternative treatment for RA-ILD in patients not responding to conventional DMARD therapy.
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spelling doaj-art-df14d9d3bcb44f3499a01fe7b8b620102025-08-20T02:21:06ZengWileyCase Reports in Immunology2090-66092090-66172012-01-01201210.1155/2012/272303272303Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with RituximabWolfgang Hartung0Judith Maier1Michael Pfeifer2Martin Fleck3Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Asklepios Clinic, 93077 Bad Abbach, GermanyDepartment of Internal Medicine I, University of Regensburg, 93042 Regensburg, GermanyDepartment of Pulmonology and Internal Medicine II, University of Regensburg, 93042 Regensburg, GermanyDepartment of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Asklepios Clinic, 93077 Bad Abbach, GermanyRheumatoid arthritis- (RA-) associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) is the extra-articular complication with most adverse impact on the quality of life and survival in RA patients. However, treatment options are limited and controlled studies are lacking. Here, we present the case of a 66-year-old patient suffering from severe RA-ILD, which has been successfully treated with Rituximab (RTX). After failure of conventional DMARD therapy, our patient showed sustained improvement of clinical pulmonary parameters as well as joint inflammation following B-cell depletion with RTX. The six-minute-walk test improved from 380 meters to 536 meters and the forced vital capacity from 2.49 liters to 3.49. The disease activity score could be reduced from 7.7 to 2.8. Therefore, RTX might be considered as an alternative treatment for RA-ILD in patients not responding to conventional DMARD therapy.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/272303
spellingShingle Wolfgang Hartung
Judith Maier
Michael Pfeifer
Martin Fleck
Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
Case Reports in Immunology
title Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
title_full Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
title_fullStr Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
title_full_unstemmed Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
title_short Effective Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease by B-Cell Targeted Therapy with Rituximab
title_sort effective treatment of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease by b cell targeted therapy with rituximab
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/272303
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