Effectiveness of Belimumab After Rituximab in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Ann Intern Med. 2021. Epub ahead of print. doi: 10.7326/M21-2078.
National and international guidelines recommend rituximab for patients with lupus refractory to conventional therapy, despite variable responses in Phase 3 trials.
In this phase 2, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, superiority trial, Shipa, et al. hypothesised that high BAFF levels after rituximab can cause disease flares, thereby limiting its effectiveness, and sought to obtain preliminary evidence for efficacy of the anti-BAFF therapeutic belimumab after rituximab in SLE.
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