Giant cell arteritis. A case with unusual neurologic manifestations and a normal sedimentation rate.
Giant cell (temporal) arteritis is a serious inflammatory condition that can lead to blindness, stroke, or other adverse sequelae if not properly treated. An elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate has traditionally been emphasized as a criterion for making this diagnosis. Delays in diagnosis and unnecessary testing may occur when a patient presents with a normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate and a clinical history consistent with this condition. We describe a patient with giant cell arteritis who presented with a normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate and who subsequently developed devastating central nervous system complications.
Neish
P R
PR
Division of Rheumatology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tenn.
Sergent
J S
JS
D000368:Aged; D001799:Blood Sedimentation; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D013700:Giant Cell Arteritis / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D009902:Optic Neuritis / Q000175:diagnosis