Key clinical point: The use of rituximab in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes compared with the use of conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARD).
Major finding: The risk for COVID-19-related hospitalization (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.14; 95% CI 1.51-3.04), intensive care unit admission (aOR 5.22; 95% CI 1.77-15.41), and invasive ventilation (aOR 2.74; 95% CI 1.36-5.51) was significantly higher with baseline use of rituximab vs csDMARD.
Study details: The data come from a retrospective cohort study including 69,549 patients with RA, of which 22,956 patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 and 364 patients were exposed to rituximab prior to the first COVID-19 diagnosis.
Disclosures: This study did not report the source of funding. JA Singh reported receiving consulting fees, owning stock options, serving on speaker’s bureaus, and being a member of various committees.
Source: Singh N et al. Rituximab is associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: A retrospective, nationally sampled cohort study from the U.S. National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C). Semin Arthritis Rheum . 2022;58:152149 (Dec 8). Doi: 10.1016/j.semarthrit.2022.152149