:   / drgbhanuprakash  
: https://t.me/bhanuprakashdr
: https://linktr.ee/DrGBhanuprakash

• Giant cell arteritis (temporal arteritis)

• It is the most common form of systemic vasculitis in adults. It is an acute and chronic, often granulomatous inflammation of arteries of large to medium size
• the mean age for disease presentation is 76
• Giant cell arteritis affects principally the arteries in the head, especially the temporal arteries which is the extracranial branch of carotid artery
• Vertebral and ophthalamic arteries may also be involved.
• There is segmental involvement of vessel . Segment of affected artery develops nodular thickening with narrowing of lumen.
• There is granulomatous intlammation in the vessel wall with foreign body and Langhans type multinucleated giant cell and fragmentation of internal elastic lamina
• Most common symptoms are nonspecific constitutional symptoms like fever, fatigue, anorexia and weight loss.
• Headache ( temporal ) is the most common vasculitis related symptom.
• Jaw daudication is the most specific symptom. Other symptoms are visual symptoms (diplopia, sudden blindness ,arthritis, and polymylagia rheumatic )
• The most serious complication of GCA is blindness, a result of anterior ischemic optic neuropathy caused by ischemia secondary to inflammation of the ophthalmic artery supplying the optic nerve
• Blood investigations : Raised ESR and normocytic normochronic anemia
• Temporal artery biopsy: this is the gold standard for diagnosis and should be performed when GCA is suspected.
• Corticosteroids are the drugs of choice for treatment usmle step 1 pathology dermatology uworld medical school

#giantcellarteritis #temporalarteritis #usmle #usmlestep1 #pathology