Giant cell arteritis complicated with microscopic polyangiitis: two cases

Abstract

Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA)-associated vasculitis and giant cell arteritis (GCA), also known as small-vessel vasculitis and large-vessel vasculitis, respectively, are sometimes difficult to distinguish by only the size and distribution of the vessels involved in daily clinical practice. We describe two cases of GCA with typical symptoms of GCA, i.e. a patient with jaw claudication complicated with microscopic polyangiitis (MPA), who had pleuritis, mononeuritis multiplex, interstitial pneumonia and scleritis. We treated the two cases as MPA and both patients achieved remission. When patients have atypical symptoms of GCA, not only GCA but also ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) should be investigated.

Keywords:

• Microscopic polyangiitis
• jaw claudication
• giant cell arteritis
• ANCA

Conflict of interest

None.