| Abstract [eng] |
Atypical manifestation of Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA): a literature review was performed to summarize current knowledge on extracranial GCA and the arteries it involves. Extracranial GCA is becoming more frequently diagnosed due to the increasing recognition among doctors and the development of advanced technologies of various imaging techniques. GCA is a systemic large vessel vasculitis with unknown etiology, typically affecting the temporal artery and associated with common complaints such as jaw claudication, new onset of headache, and constitutional symptoms such as fever, malaise, and weight loss. In a fraction of cases, GCA may present with atypical manifestations which may be reflected with other involvement of the classic clinical features the literature describes. Due to the nonspecific clinical presentation and low sensitivity of temporal artery biopsies, extracranial GCA is usually diagnosed by imaging: Computed tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), CT angiography, fluorodeoxyglucose - positron emission tomography (F-FDG-PET), and Ultrasound (US). Furthermore, since other than cranial arteries such as the aorta and its branches are involved, it may cause complications such as an aortic aneurysm or dissection, aortic arch syndrome, arm claudication, and stroke. Treatment of extracranial GCA has been controversial in the recent literature, in general, the same strategy is applied as in patients with classic temporal arteritis, and surgical procedures may be indicated depending on the medical condition and the characteristics of the patient. |
