Rituximab used for Graves' eye disease

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Nov. 10 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers report the drug rituximab helped six patients with Graves' eye disease.

The study, published in the journal Ophthalmology, said the drug was used only after the patients did not respond to usual treatment.

One of the study researchers, Dr. Raymond S. Douglas of the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center in Ann Arbor, said Graves' eye disease -- an autoimmune disease with inflammation and fatty deposits in the eye muscles and connective tissue around the eye -- is more common in women than men. Symptoms include bulging eyes, retracted eyelids, dry eyes, and, in severe cases, loss of vision.

Douglas, who was at the University of California-Los Angeles when he treated the study participants, said while the results from such a small number must be viewed with some caution, the substantial benefits seen in these patients provide good reason to do a large-scale clinical trial.

"These patients had already received the maximum level of steroid treatment," Douglas said in a statement. "Treatment with rituximab calmed inflammation, stopped progression of the disease, and saved the patients from having to undergo surgery."