title: Gender differences in giant cell arteritis: a case-control study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine sex differences in the clinical spectrum and disease pattern of cranial and extracranial giant cell arteritis (GCA).
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on 153 consecutive patients with a confirmed diagnosis of GCA between 2002 and 2013 were retrospectively obtained from our database. For every male patient, two age-matched female patients were identified. Clinical symptoms, vascular physical examination findings, laboratory values, and the disease patterns as assessed by colour duplex sonography of the temporal and axillary arteries were compared between women and men. Subgroup analyses were performed for patients aged 50-69 years and ≥70 years at disease onset.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No significant differences between sexes were noted with regard to cranial GCA. Female patients significantly more frequently had axillary artery involvement (48.9 vs. 27.5%, p=0.03), a difference mainly driven by a higher rate of axillary artery involvement in women ≥70 years of age (38.6 vs. 4.5%, p<0.01). Women aged 70 years or older significantly more frequently had axillary artery stenosis (27.3 vs. 0%, p<0.01), symptoms of upper extremity ischaemia (20.5 vs. 0%, p<0.01), and polymyalgia rheumatica (36.4 vs. 9.1%, p=0.02) compared to men. Significant sex differences were observed with regard to the frequency of anaemia and the mean platelet count.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In GCA involvement of the cranial arteries does not differ between sexes. Female patients with GCA significantly more frequently exhibit extracranial (i.e. axillary) arterial involvement than men.
authors.affiliation: Division of Vascular Medicine, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sturm
authors.affiliation: Division of Rheumatology, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dechant
authors.affiliation: Division of Rheumatology, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Fabian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Proft
authors.affiliation: Division of Rheumatology, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Hendrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Schulze-Koops
authors.affiliation: Division of Vascular Medicine, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
authors.affiliation: Division of Vascular Medicine, Medical Clinic and Policlinic IV, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany. michael.czihal@med.uni-muenchen.de.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Czihal
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D013700:Giant Cell Arteritis / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012727:Sex Characteristics