Giant-cell arteritis
Other names | Temporal arteritis, cranial arteritis, Horton disease, senile arteritis, granulomatous arteritis
The arteries of the face and scalp.
Specialty | Rheumatology, emergency medicine
Symptoms | Headache, pain over the temples, flu-like symptoms, double vision, difficulty opening the mouth
Complications | Blindness, aortic dissection, aortic aneurysm, polymyalgia rheumatica
Usual onset | Age greater than 50
Causes | Inflammation of the small blood vessels within the walls of larger arteries
Diagnostic method | Based on symptoms and blood tests, confirmed by biopsy of the temporal artery
Differential diagnosis | Takayasu arteritis, stroke, primary amyloidosis
Treatment | Steroids, bisphosphonates, proton pump inhibitor
Prognosis | Life expectancy (typically normal)
Frequency | ~ 1 in 15,000 people a year (> 50 years old)