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Aspirin useful as adjunctive treatment for giant cell arteritis
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NEW YORK — An aspirin regimen should be considered a reasonable adjunctive treatment for giant cell arteritis, according to a speaker here.
According to Michael S. Lee, MD, speaking at OSN New York 2012, diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA) is difficult because one in five patients with GCA has no symptoms or a normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate.
The level of C-reactive protein also creates a problem with GCA diagnosis, he said, because no standardized protocol has been created to address how these levels should be reported to physicians; different laboratories report C-reactive protein levels using different units, Lee said.
Temporal artery biopsy remains the diagnosis standard, and physicians should obtain at least 2 cm of temporal artery during the biopsy, according to Lee.
“Rather than simultaneous biopsy, I personally fall on the side of biopsy one side first,” he said. “If it is positive, then stop. If it is negative, then consider biopsy the other side.”
Although a consensus exists that steroids are the standard of treatment for GCA management, Lee said a lack of consensus remains on the dose, route and taper amounts. He said rheumatologists tend to prescribe lower steroid doses while ophthalmologists tend to prescribe higher amounts.
Intravenous methylprednisolone, oral steroids and methotrexate may also be beneficial treatments for patients with GCA, Lee said.
Reporting results from a retrospective study that examined ischemic events among GCA patients treated with aspirin, Lee said 16% of aspirin-treated patients reported an ischemic event, while 48% of non-aspirin-treated patients reported an ischemic event.
Disclosure: Lee has no relevant financial disclosures.
OSN New York 2013 will be held September 6-8 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. Learn more at www.osnny.com.