title: Large vessel vasculitis in a patient with acute Q-fever: A case report.
abstract: Q fever is a zoonosis caused by the rickettsial organism Coxiella burnetii. Infection has an acute course, usually with a self-limited febrile illness and the possibility of the evaluation to a chronic course with endocardial involvement. The presence of autoantibodies and various autoimmune disorders have also been associated with C. burnetii infection. We report a case of acute Q fever in which the patient developed large vessel vasculitis. The FDG-PET/CT scan detected inflammation of the thoracic aortic wall, suggesting an unusual immunologic host response to acute Q fever infection.
authors.affiliation: 6th Department of Internal Medicine, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Fotini
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baziaka
authors.affiliation: 6th Department of Internal Medicine, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Ilias
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Karaiskos
authors.affiliation: 6th Department of Internal Medicine, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Lamprini
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Galani
authors.affiliation: 6th Department of Internal Medicine, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Eleftheria
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Barmpouti
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Cardiology, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Stilianos
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Konstantinidis
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kitas
authors.affiliation: 6th Department of Internal Medicine, Hygeia General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Giamarellou
keywords: Coxiella burnetii infection; FDG-PET scan; Q fever; Vasculitis