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Summary

Giant cell arteritis is a disorder that causes inflammation of your arteries, usually in the scalp, neck, and arms. It narrows the arteries, which keeps blood from flowing well. Giant cell arteritis often occurs with another disorder called polymyalgia rheumatica. Both are more common in women than in men. They almost always affect people over the age of 50.

Early symptoms of giant cell arteritis resemble the flu: fatigue, loss of appetite, and fever. Other symptoms include:

• Headaches
• Pain and tenderness over the temples
• Double vision or visual loss, dizziness
• Problems with coordination and balance
• Pain in your jaw and tongue

Your doctor will make the diagnosis based on your medical history, symptoms, and a physical exam. There is no specific test for giant cell arteritis, but you may have tests that measure inflammation.

Treatment is usually with corticosteroids. Early treatment is important; otherwise there is a risk of permanent vision loss or stroke. However, when properly treated, giant cell arteritis rarely comes back.

NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases

Start Here

• Giant Cell Arteritis (American College of Rheumatology)
• Polymyalgia Rheumatica and Giant Cell Arteritis (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Diagnosis and Tests

• C-Reactive Protein (CRP) Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• What Is Giant Cell Arteritis? (American Academy of Ophthalmology) Also in Spanish
• What is Vasculitis? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Giant Cell Arteritis (Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center) Also in Spanish
• Vasculitis in the Nervous System (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Giant Cell Arteritis (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Investigating interferon type I responses in patients with suspected giant cell...
• Article: Genes deregulated in giant cell arteritis by Nanostring nCounter gene expression...
• Article: Polymyalgia rheumatica and giant cell arteritis: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.
• Giant Cell Arteritis -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• American College of Rheumatology
• Find a Rheumatologist (American College of Rheumatology)
• National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• ESR (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Giant cell arteritis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish