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Rituximab-Treated Patients Have a Poor Response to Influenza Vaccination

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Abstract

The efficacy of influenza vaccination in patients treated with rituximab is a clinically important question. Rheumatology clinics are populated with patients receiving rituximab for a broad array of disorders. Although several studies have explored the efficacy of other vaccines in rituximab-treated populations, results have been conflicting. We wished to define influenza vaccine efficacy in a rituximab-treated cohort. We examined 17 evaluable subjects treated with rituximab for rheumatologic conditions. T cell subsets, B cells subsets, T cell function, and B cell function were evaluated at specific time points along with hemagglutinination inhibition titers after receiving the standard inactivated influenza vaccine. T cell subset counts were significantly different than controls but did not change with rituximab. B cells depleted in all patients but were in various stages of recovery at the time of vaccination. Influenza vaccine responsiveness was poor overall, with only 16 % of subjects having a four-fold increase in titer. Pre-existing titers were retained throughout the study, however. The ability to respond to the influenza vaccine appeared to be related to the degree of B cell recovery at the time of vaccination. This study emphasizes that antibody responses to vaccine are impaired in subjects treated with rituximab and supports the concept that B cell recovery influences influenza vaccine responsiveness.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the patients and the physicians who contributed to this study. The skills of Dr. Yang-Zhu Du, Lytia Fisher and Kristal Dow are gratefully acknowledged. Supported in part by NIH grant NO1-AI-50024, the Arthritis Foundation, the American Autoimmunity Related Disease Association, and R01 AR34156 and R01 AI063626. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Eisenberg, R.A., Jawad, A.F., Boyer, J. et al. Rituximab-Treated Patients Have a Poor Response to Influenza Vaccination. J Clin Immunol 33, 388–396 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10875-012-9813-x

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