Ocrelizumab, a new B-cell–targeted therapy for multiple sclerosis (MS), demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of relapsing and primary progressive MS (PPMS), according to a recent literature review, and is the first therapy approved for patients with PPMS. A comprehensive literature search was conducted using search terms “ocrelizumab” and “multiple sclerosis” using the date range of 1946 through October 2017. Investigators found:

• A phase II trial established 600 mg intravenously every 6 months as the preferred dosing schedule.
• 2 phase III trials evaluated the efficacy of ocrelizumab in patients with relapsing remitting MS, and individual and pooled analysis demonstrated a significant reduction in annualized relapse rate, disability progression at 12 weeks, and gadolinium-enhancing lesions on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
• Patients with PPMS were evaluated in a third phase III trial, which showed a significant decrease in disease progression at 12 weeks and volume of T2-weighted lesions on MRI.