Negative anti-neutrophil cytoplasm antibody at switch to maintenance therapy is associated with a reduced risk of relapse

• Published in: Arthritis research & therapy Vol. 19; no. 1; p. 129
• Main Authors: Morgan, Matthew David, Szeto, Matthew, Walsh, Michael, Jayne, David, Westman, Kerstin, Rasmussen, Niels, Hiemstra, Thomas F, Flossmann, Oliver, Berden, Annelies, Höglund, Peter, Harper, Lorraine
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 07.06.2017; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; ANCA; ANCA-associated vasculitis; Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis - drug therapy; Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis - immunology; Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic - immunology; Autoantibodies; Clinical Medicine; Clinical trial; Cyclophosphamide - therapeutic use; Disease-Free Survival; Female; Health aspects; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents - therapeutic use; Klinisk medicin; Maintenance Chemotherapy - methods; Male; Medical and Health Sciences; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Middle Aged; Outcome Assessment (Health Care) - methods; Outcome Assessment (Health Care) - statistics & numerical data; Prognostic factors; Proportional Hazards Models; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Recurrence; Recurrence (Disease); Relapse; Remission Induction; Retrospective Studies; Risk Factors; Treatment; Urologi och njurmedicin; Urology and Nephrology; Vasculitis; Relapse; Treatment; Vasculitis; ANCA; Clinical trial; ANCA-associated vasculitis; Prognostic factors
• DOI: 10.1186/s13075-017-1321-1
• ISSN: 1478-6362; 1478-6354

Relapse of disease is frequent in anti-neutrophil cytoplasm antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV). It is unclear whether persistent ANCA when starting maintenance therapy increases the risk of relapse. We examined the association between ANCA status and relapse in two randomised controlled trials. ANCA-positive patients in two trials, CYCLOPS and IMPROVE, were switched from cyclophosphamide to maintenance therapy after achieving clinical remission. We classified patients as being either ANCA-positive or ANCA-negative at the time they started maintenance therapy. We compared the risk of relapse in ANCA-positive and ANCA-negative patients. Of 252 patients included, 102 (40%) experienced at least one relapse during the follow-up period. At the time of the switch from induction to maintenance therapy, 111 were ANCA-positive, of whom 55 (50%) relapsed, compared to 141 patients who were ANCA-negative, of whom 47 (33%) relapsed. In multivariable time-to-event analysis, a reduced risk of relapse was associated with having become ANCA-negative at the time of switching to maintenance therapy (hazard ratio 0.63, 95% confidence interval 0.42-0.95; p = 0.026). In addition, initial proteinase 3 (PR3)-ANCA, younger age, lower serum creatinine, pulsed cyclophosphamide for remission induction, and mycophenolate mofetil for remission maintenance were all associated with an increased risk of relapse. Becoming ANCA-negative before the switch to maintenance is associated with a reduced risk of relapse. CYCLOPS: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00430105 . Registered retrospectively on 31 January 2007. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00307645 . Registered retrospectively on 27 March 2006.