Clinical trials on systemic necrotizing vasculitides

Abstract

Treatments of systemic necrotizing vasculitides have progressed markedly over the past few decades. The first attempts to obtain better-adapted therapeutic strategies evaluated the indications of conventional drugs, and their abilities to prolong survival and prevent relapses, while decreasing the severity and number of side effects. Most of the prospective clinical trials were organized by the French Vasculitis Study Group and the European Vasculitis Study Group, and have contributed to optimizing targeted treatment strategies. Recent therapeutic strategies include immunomodulating methods, like plasma exchanges, or products, like intravenous immunoglobulins, or, more recently, new agents called biotherapies. Some of the latter have achieved promising effects, for example, anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha and anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies, and are now being evaluated in prospective trials.