Tocilizumab treatment for new onset refractory status epilepticus

We investigated the therapeutic potential of the interleukin-6 receptor inhibitor tocilizumab in 7 patients with new onset refractory status epilepticus (NORSE) who remained refractory to conventional immunotherapy with rituximab (n = 5) or without rituximab (n = 2). Status epilepticus (SE) was terminated after 1 or 2 doses of tocilizumab in 6 patients with a median interval of 3 days from the initiation. They had no recurrence of SE during the observation. However, 2 patients experienced severe adverse events related to infection during the tocilizumab therapy. Further prospective controlled studies are warranted to validate the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in patients with NORSE.