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1 Departments of Endocrinology and Metabolism and 2 Hematology, Odense University Hospital, 5000, Odense C, Denmark and 3 Institute for Inflammation Research, Rigshospitalet National University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
(Correspondence should be addressed to D El Fassi; Email: fassi{at}dadlnet.dk)
Abstract
We have reviewed the immunology of thyroid autoimmunity with special reference to the importance of B lymphocytes (B cells) in thyroidal and extrathyroidal Graves disease (GD), thus providing a framework for the hypothesis that B cell depletion may be beneficial in GD. Additionally, after reviewing the efficacy and safety in other autoimmune diseases, we propose that treatment with the B cell-depleting agent Rituximab may become a clinically relevant treatment option in selected cases of GD, particularly when complicated with thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy.
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