Treatment of benign lymphoid hyperplasia of the orbit with rituximab

Benign lymphoid hyperplasia is a disorder characterized by polyclonal lymphocytic infiltration of orbital tissues, predominantly with B-cells. Rituximab is a monoclonal antibody directed against CD20, a B-cell marker. Two patients with recurrent orbital masses involving the lacrimal glands were treated with rituximab. The diagnosis of benign lymphoid hyperplasia with predominance of CD20 cells was confirmed in both cases based on a surgical biopsy. Both patients had been previously treated with standard therapies, including high-dose steroids, and one patient had failed external-beam radiation therapy. They both responded well to treatment with intravenous rituximab. Neither patient experienced any side effects associated with rituximab.