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This page is an AI-assisted Turkish summary of the study presented at the 26th World Congress of Psychiatry. The study belongs to the presenting authors; please refer to the original source when citing it.

EV1218

Rituximab treatment in psychotic disorders: a qualitative study of patients’ experiences within a randomized controlled trial

RITUXIMAB TREATMENT IN PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF PATIENTS’ EXPERIENCES WITHIN A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Blinded qualitative interviews with patients treated with rituximab revealed changes ranging from mild to marked that were not captured by standard symptom scales.

The aim of the study is to explore patients’ experiences of change following rituximab treatment for psychotic disorders. This qualitative study is embedded within the double-blind randomized controlled RCT Rits trial, which evaluates the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody rituximab as an adjunctive treatment. In the trial, 123 patients were randomized to rituximab or placebo; semi-structured interviews were conducted with 95 patients 3 to 5 months after infusion. Both patients and the interviewer remained blinded to treatment allocation throughout the interviews, and the interviewer completed a blinded Clinical Global Impression–Improvement (CGI-I) rating after each interview. The study was unblinded in September 2026, and a qualitative thematic analysis will be conducted in the rituximab-treated group (n = 50). Preliminary analyses indicate that changes reported in the rituximab group range from mild to marked, including reductions in negative and positive psychotic symptoms, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, alongside increases in energy, motivation, social engagement, daily functioning, independence, and emotional responsiveness. The authors state that qualitative interviews complement standard clinical outcome measures and that integrating qualitative and quantitative findings supports a more comprehensive understanding of treatment effects and more person-centered care. It should be borne in mind that these findings are preliminary and that the full thematic analysis has not yet been completed.

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