Patients with lupus and suffering from complications of the central nervous system can expect considerable relief coming their way when Rituximab is administered to them according to rheumatologists at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology in Vienna, Austria.

Lupus is an immune system complication in which the human body executes an attack on itself resulting in diffused damage to several body organs besides resulting in inflammation and pain.

From News-Medical.Net:

Professor Neuwelt specialises in diagnosing and treating patients with CNS lupus. “It can be difficult to disentangle psychiatric disorders that arise from other causes,” he states. In a portion of patients, depression, seizures, verbal comprehension, perception and memory will be associated with lupus. People are understandably afraid to admit that their IQ has gone down or that they cannot read any more in fear of losing their job,” he continued. A careful history, ruling out other causes such as infection and drug side effects has improved diagnostic accuracy.

Professor Neuwelt, like others using this well-tested oncological drug in other forms of lupus, is concerned about the depletion of the B cells by rituximab for the long term. However, the risk/benefit ratio from this new treatment in its early stages is extremely promising. “It is the first drug in my 26 years of treating patients with severe central nervous system lupus, used alone or in combination with other therapies that has not only significantly boosted the quality of life for patients with this dreadful disease, but also reduced the burden of side effects of standard treatment with steroids and cyclophosphamide. However, we desperately need randomized-controlled trials.” he concluded.

Clinical professor Michael Neuwelt, at the University of California San Francisco and Stanford University, remarked that Rituximab is not only safe and effective but also last up to six months with a low risk of any side effect.