Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Patients With NMO Spectrum Disorders and MOG-Antibody-Associated Diseases: COPANMO(G)-Study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the life of patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated diseases (MOGAD). METHODS: This multicenter, cross-sectional study included data of 187 patients recruited from 19 different German and Austrian Neuromyelitis Optica Study Group (NEMOS) centers between July 2021 and March 2022. The effects of the pandemic on immunotherapeutic treatment and access to care, the possible severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, and the potential effect of vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 on disease incidence and relapse risk were assessed using a patient questionnaire. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was measured with the EuroQoL Group 5-Dimension 5-Level Scale (EQ-5D-5L). Demographic and clinical characteristics were retrieved from the NEMOS database. RESULTS: One hundred eighty-seven patients (75% women; median age 47 [range 21-86] years; median disease duration 5.5 [range 0-67] years; median Expanded Disability Status Scale 2.0 [range 0-8.0]; 51% aquaporin-4 immunoglobulin G (AQP4-IgG)-positive, 36% myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG)-IgG-positive 13% double-seronegative) were analyzed. Most patients maintained excellent access to healthcare services throughout the pandemic. Immunotherapy was not changed in 88% of patients. Ninety-one percent of all patients were satisfied with medical care during the pandemic. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of patients rated their risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2 as low or moderate. Among this study sample, 23 patients (12%) knowingly acquired an infection with SARS-CoV-2 and predominantly had a nonsevere course of illness (n = 22/23, 96%). The SARS-CoV-2 vaccination rate was 89%, with 4 cases of confirmed attack or first manifestation of NMOSD/MOGAD occurring in temporal association with the vaccination (range 2-9 days). The reported HRQoL did not decline compared with a prepandemic assessment (mean EQ-5D-5L index value 0.76, 95% bootstrap confidence interval [CI] 0.72-0.80; mean EQ-VAS 66.5, 95% bootstrap CI 63.5-69.3). DISCUSSION: This study demonstrates that, overall, patients with NMOSD/MOGAD affiliated with specialized centers received ongoing medical care during the pandemic. Patients' satisfaction with medical care and HRQoL did not decrease.

Long-term Therapy With Interleukin 6 Receptor Blockade in Highly Active Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder.

IMPORTANCE: Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is characterized by disabling relapses of optic neuritis and myelitis and the presence of aquaporin 4 antibodies (AQP4-abs). Interleukin 6, which is significantly elevated in serum and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with NMO, induces AQP4-ab production by plasmablasts and represents a novel therapeutic target. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the long-term safety and efficacy of tocilizumab, a humanized antibody targeting the interleukin 6 receptor, in NMO and NMO spectrum disorder. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Retrospective observational study with 10 to 51 months of follow-up between December 2010 and February 2015, in neurology departments at tertiary referral centers. Participants were 8 female patients of white race/ethnicity with highly active AQP4-ab-seropositive NMO (n = 6) and NMO spectrum disorder (n = 2) whose disease had been resistant to previous medications, including B-cell depletion, and who switched to tocilizumab (6-8 mg/kg of body weight per dose). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Annualized relapse rate, Expanded Disability Status Scale score, spinal cord and brain magnetic resonance imaging, AQP4-ab titers, pain levels (numerical rating scale), and adverse effects. RESULTS: Patients were followed up for a mean (SD) of 30.9 (15.9) months after switching to tocilizumab. Two of eight patients received add-on therapy with monthly corticosteroid pulses (temporary) or azathioprine, respectively. During tocilizumab treatment, the median annualized relapse rate significantly decreased from 4.0 (interquartile range, 3.0-5.0) in the year before tocilizumab therapy to 0.4 (interquartile range, 0.0-0.8) (P = .008), and the median Expanded Disability Status Scale score significantly decreased from 7.3 (interquartile range, 5.4-8.4) to 5.5 (interquartile range, 2.6-6.5) (P = .03). Active magnetic resonance imaging lesions were seen in 6 of 8 patients at tocilizumab initiation and in 1 of 8 patients at the last magnetic resonance imaging. Three patients remained relapse free during tocilizumab treatment. In 5 patients, a total of 8 relapses occurred, 4 within the first 2½ months of therapy. Five attacks were associated with delayed tocilizumab administration (≥40 days), and 6 attacks were associated with reduced tocilizumab dosage (6 vs 8 mg/kg). The AQP4-ab titers (P = .02) and pain levels (P = .02) dropped significantly during tocilizumab treatment. Adverse effects included moderate cholesterol elevation in 6 of 8 patients, infections in 4 of 8 patients, and deep venous thrombosis and neutropenia in one patient each. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Prolonged tocilizumab therapy may be safe and effective from early treatment phases onward for otherwise therapy-resistant highly active NMO and NMO spectrum disorder. Relapse patterns indicate that adherence to a regular therapeutic regimen with monthly infusions of tocilizumab (8 mg/kg) may increase efficacy.

Treating neuromyelitis optica with the interleukin-6 receptor antagonist tocilizumab.

We present a 32-year-old female patient with fulminant neuromyelitis optica. After the initial treatment with the monoclonal antibody rituximab failed, therapy with the anti-IL-6 receptor antagonist tocilizumab was initiated. The patient experienced a clinically relevant improvement from severe tetraparesis to low-grade paresis, which is still maintained. On MRI of the spinal cord an almost complete restitution of a predescribed extensive myelopathy accompanied this clinical improvement. Meanwhile clinical stability was achieved for over 1 year without any side effects of the ongoing treatment with tocilizumab.