Effects of treatment with rituximab on microcirculation in patients with long-term systemic sclerosis

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of rituximab on microcirculation in long-term SSc. RESULTS: Four patients with diffuse SSc over 3 years of disease received rituximab cycles of two 1-g infusions every 6 months for 2 years. Videocapillaroscopy was performed at baseline, 12 months, and 24 months and semi-quantitative scoring of videocapillaroscopy abnormalities was performed and the microangiopathy evolution score (MES: range 0–9) was calculated. The mean disease duration was 5 years (range 3–15). On videocapillaroscopy, giant capillaries and hemorrhages remained stable from baseline to 24 months. Capillary loss, abnormally-shaped capillaries, and MES stabilized at 12 months and increased by 24.5% and 28% at 24 months. Rituximab improves microcirculation in long-term SSc. Stabilization and reduced progression of microcirculation abnormalities were achieved at 12 and 24 months, respectively. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13104-018-3994-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.