Rituximab shows promise in preventing vasculitis relapses

NCT ID NCT00748644

First seen Nov 20, 2025 · Last updated Jun 22, 2026 · Updated 24 times

Summary

This study tested whether rituximab, a targeted antibody therapy, is better than azathioprine, a standard immune-suppressing drug, at preventing relapses in people with ANCA-associated vasculitis. 117 patients who had achieved remission were randomly assigned to receive either rituximab infusions or azathioprine pills over 18 months. The main goal was to see how many had a major relapse during treatment and follow-up.

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This is a summary of the original study . Summaries may miss details or leave out important information. Before applying or accepting participation, make sure you have read and understood the full study. Curemydisease.com takes no responsibility whatsoever for anything missed, misunderstood, or acted upon as a result of our summary — we know it does not capture everything.

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Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Hopital Cochin

    Paris, 75014, France

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance

Rituximab

What this could lead to

If successful, rituximab could become a standard maintenance therapy to prevent relapses in vasculitis patients, reducing the need for long-term steroids.

What could go wrong

This is a Phase 3 trial, but results may not apply to all patients. Rituximab can cause infusion reactions and increase infection risk. The study is completed, so findings are available but not yet widely implemented.

Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis granulomatosis with polyangiitis microscopic polyangiitis

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.