Rare Ischemic Complications of Giant Cell Arteritis: Case Series and Literature Review.

Am J Case Rep

Vasculitis Clinic, Canadian Network for Research on Vasculitides (CanVasc), Division of Internal Medicine, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada.

Published: October 2022

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study investigates rare ischemic complications in patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA) by reviewing cases from 1994 to 2020 and literature on the topic.
  • Three patients were identified with rare complications: one had a sixth cranial nerve palsy, another suffered necrosis of the tongue and scalp along with visual loss, and the last had scalp necrosis.
  • All patients received glucocorticoid treatment, which led to improvements, highlighting the importance of recognizing these rare complications for timely diagnosis and treatment.

Article Abstract

BACKGROUND Some ischemic complications due to giant cell arteritis (GCA) are rare and underdiagnosed. We describe the clinical features and outcomes of patients with GCA presenting with rare ischemic complications. CASE REPORT Our single-center retrospective database of patients with GCA was reviewed from 1994 to 2020. We describe 3 cases of rare ischemic complications secondary to GCA. We review the literature regarding ischemic complications due to GCA and their outcomes. All 3 cases met the American College of Rheumatology criteria for GCA. All patients experienced rare ischemic complications due to GCA. In case 1, the patient presented with a sixth cranial nerve palsy. In case 2, the patient presented with tongue and scalp necrosis, and with permanent visual loss due to anterior ischemic optic neuropathy. In case 3, the patient presented with scalp necrosis. In all 3 cases, the patients received glucocorticoids either intravenously and/or orally, which led to improvement. They all improved within the course of their followup visits. A literature review was performed to identify similar cases and outcomes. CONCLUSIONS Ischemic complications due to GCA can be part of the initial presentation of the vasculitis, making confirmation of the diagnosis more difficult. Physicians should be aware of these rare complications since rapid diagnosis and initiation of glucocorticoids may alter the course of the disease.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9578098PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.12659/AJCR.937565DOI Listing

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