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The role of PET/CT in diagnosing giant cell arteritis (GCA) and assessing the risk of ischemic events

Reporter: Aviva Lev-Ari, PhD, RN

May 20, 2019 — PET/CT images are offering evidence of a link between vascular patterns at the time of diagnosis for giant cell arteritis (GCA) and a patient’s risk of an ischemic event, Spanish researchers explained in a study published online on 12 May in the European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging.

The group found that patients with inflammation in vertebral arteries, which causes blood vessels to narrow, were five times more likely to develop ischemic symptoms. The information may be particularly helpful because GCA is difficult to diagnose in its early stages.

“Bearing in mind these results and our findings, we consider that the vertebral arteries should be carefully studied in patients with suspected GCA, not only to support the diagnosis but also to assess the risk of development of ischemic events,” wrote lead author Dr. Jaume Mestre-Torres and colleagues from Hospital Vall d’Hebron in Barcelona.

GCA’s challenges

Giant cell arteritis is an inflammatory disease that causes the large blood vessels to narrow and restrict blood flow. The affliction is typically seen in the temporal arteries and the aorta in adults older than 50. Currently, there is little information on how the disease develops, although there are indications that it may be linked to genetics.

The challenge for clinicians is that there are “no specific clinical symptoms that lead to the diagnosis of GCA, but headache and ischemic symptoms such as jaw claudication and transient visual loss or permanent visual loss may raise suspicion [of the disease],” the authors noted.

Results

In assessing visual loss, the team found no significant differences between patients with vertebral artery involvement and permanent visual loss (61.5%) and patients with vertebral artery issues and no permanent visual loss (58.8%) (p = 0.88). Interestingly, the presence of intrathoracic large-vessel vasculitis tended to protect against a patient’s likelihood of permanent visual loss.

In addition, “all patients with vertebral involvement but no aortic involvement showed ischemic manifestations at disease onset,” the researchers noted. “In contrast, none of the patients with aortic involvement but no vertebral hypermetabolism showed ischemic symptoms.”

SOURCE

https://www.auntminnieeurope.com/index.aspx?sec=sup&sub=mol&pag=dis&ItemID=617395