Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0039483 (giant cell arteritis)
 3,204 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Out of 66 patients who were diagnosed as suffering from polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR; n = 40), temporal arteritis (AT; n = 14) or both (n = 12) in a 6.5 year period (incidence 3.4/100,000 per year), 9 died and 49 were followed up for an average period of 28 months. Exacerbations of the illness (n = 24) and complications in the course (n = 32) were more frequent with an initial ESR greater than 90 mm/h. Postural vertigo (n = 11), amaurosis fugax (n = 11) and polyneuropathy (n = 8) were the most frequent neurological complications. Persisting unilateral blindness and aromatic anosmia developed in 2 patients each. Complications were significantly more frequent in patients with initial symptoms of AT (chi 2 P less than 0.001). CRP-levels correlated better with persisting symptoms in the course than did the ESR. Recurrences after treatment were significantly more frequent when the length of corticosteroid-therapy was less than 20 months (chi 2 P less than 0.009). On follow up there were normal values for neopterin, tumour necrosis factor and antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi.
 ...
PMID:Clinical and laboratory findings with giant cell arteritis. 140 90

Giant cell arteritis is a visually devastating disease that primarily affects the over 55 age group. This granulomatous inflammation affects large and medium-sized arteries anywhere in the body. Systemic manifestations of this disease include: jaw claudication, scalp tenderness, malaise and vertigo. Decreased appetite and/or anorexia may also be seen. Ocular manifestations may include ischemic optic neuropathy with sudden markedly reduced visual acuity. Steroid treatment is used to protect the uninvolved eye. In its classic form the disease is monitored by adjusting the steroid dosage with the erythrocyte sed rate (ESR). Prognosis for visual restoration in the involved eye is poor.
 ...
PMID:Giant cell arteritis. 323 Feb 40

A 77-year-old woman was admitted because of progressive vertigo, nausea and a dysarthric speech disorder. The patient's history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia, and the finding of murmurs over peripheral arteries at physical examination led to a presumptive diagnosis of cerebellar ischaemia in the context of generalized atherosclerosis. However, the diagnosis was revised when bilateral cerebellar infarction was demonstrated radiologically, and a biopsy of a temporal artery revealed giant cell arteritis. Despite treatment with prednisone (60 mg daily) the patient's neurological condition deteriorated, and she succumbed several months later to pneumonia. The case illustrates the pitfalls in the diagnostic approach of elderly patients with multiple pathology and it also emphasizes that in an elderly person with high erythrocyte sedimentation rate (> 100 mm in the first hour) temporal arteritis should be ruled out as soon as possible to prevent further neurological damage.
 ...
PMID:[Clinical thinking and decision making in practice. An elderly patient with vertigo and high sedimentation rate]. 1066 48

A 76-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with vertigo. Previously he had been extensively examined because of an increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate without any clinical symptoms. Physical examination revealed 60 mmHg blood pressure difference between the two arms. Color duplex ultrasound examination revealed bilateral extreme narrowing of the external carotid and axillobrachial artery with a dark, hypo-echoic halo around the lumen. This condition was recognized as a specific sign for giant cell arteritis (GCA), described originally in cases of temporal arteritis. The diagnosis was confirmed by biopsy of the temporal artery. In contrast to the typical cranial form of GCA -- our patient showed an unusual, bilateral large-vessel manifestation. The diagnosis was based on ultrasound images rather than on symptoms that characterize the well-known temporal form. This observation emphasizes the role of color duplex ultrasonography in the diagnosis and follow-up of GCA.
 ...
PMID:Bilateral axillobrachial and external carotid artery manifestation of giant cell arteritis: important role of color duplex ultrasonography in the diagnosis. 1599 26

Anti Phospholipid Syndrome (APS) is a relatively new conception of syndrome complex first noticed in 1983. It may be primary or secondary to other diseases like SLE, RA, Systemic sclerosis, behchet's syndrome, temporal arteritis, sjogren's syndrome psoriatic arthropathy etc. Clinical manifestations are consequences of vascular thrombosis and embolism like DVT, pulmonary embolism, stroke, TIA, complication of pregnancy with pregnancy loss. We report a 34 years married female housewife who presented with sudden onset of nausea, vomiting, vertigo, dysphagia, dysarthria and ataxia. She had a chronic leg ulcer. Neurological findings were consistent with lateral medullary syndrome due to stroke though she was normotensive, nondiabetic with normal lipid profile. She had history of two abortions in last three years. Investigations were done accordingly and she fulfilled the diagnostic criteria of APS. No secondary cause was detected after thorough clinical examination and laboratory investigations. She was treated symptomatically along with oral anticoagulation. She improved slowly but steadily.
 ...
PMID:Anti phospholipid syndrome. 1918 54

Systemic vasculitides constitute a heterogeneous group of diseases with frequent overlapping in their clinical findings and the size of the vessels involved. They may be primary or secondary to other diseases. Their common characteristic is the inflammation of blood vessels, giving rise to ischaemia. In the present article, we have reviewed the most common audiovestibular features that may be observed in patients with systemic vasculitides. Audiovestibular manifestations may be the first symptom of a systemic vasculitis. Audiological manifestations include sudden hearing loss and progressive sensorineural hearing loss. Vertigo and nystagmus are vestibular symptoms that may be observed in several systemic vasculitides. Vestibular loss in caloric test, abnormal head-shaking nystagmus, head thrust test and positioning test (benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo) may also be found. Improvement of audiovestibular function is frequently observed in patients with giant cell arteritis following corticosteroid therapy.
 ...
PMID:[Audiovestibular manifestations in systemic vasculitis]. 1990 20

An 84-year-old male with a 3-month history of headache and elevated C-reactive protein levels was admitted for biopsy of the superficial temporal artery, which led to the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA). Two days after prednisolone therapy was initiated, the patient began to experience transient vertigo attacks. Two days later, dysarthria, left-sided hemiparesis, right abducens palsy, and horizontal nystagmus developed. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging disclosed fresh infarctions in the vertebrobasilar territory. Since the patient became drowsy because of brainstem compression and hydrocephalus due to cerebellar swelling, emergency suboccipital decompression surgery and ventricular drainage were performed. Subsequently, the patient's consciousness levels improved. MR angiography revealed right vertebral artery (VA) occlusion and left VA stenosis due to arteritis. Ischemic stroke is a serious though relatively rare complication of GCA. Similar cases have been reported, in which ischemic stroke developed despite or possibly due to steroid therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first description of vertebrobasilar infarction associated with GCA in the Japanese population. The merits and potential demerits of steroid therapy are briefly discussed.
...
PMID:Vertebrobasilar infarction related to giant cell (temporal) arteritis: case report. 2439 Jan 82

In giant cell arteritis (GCA), involvement of the vertebral arteries is rare with reported rates of 3%-4% for ischemic events secondary to vertebral artery stenosis or occlusion for those patients with GCA. This case study describes a patient who initially presented with acute onset of vertigo but was also found to have transient, side-alternating upper limb neurological findings. While initial imaging showed no vascular abnormalities, it was not until GCA was eventually confirmed with a temporal artery biopsy that the initial scans were shown to have bilateral narrowing of the vertebral arteries. While rare, vertebral artery involvement is an important complication to consider in the setting of GCA due to the high rate of associated mortality, despite immunosuppressive therapy.
...
PMID:Case Study: Giant Cell Arteritis with Vertebral Artery Stenosis. 2727 53