Giant Cell Arteritis

Patients who eventually developed giant cell arteritis demonstrated significantly higher levels of apolipoprotein A-I at baseline, according to population-based data published in Arthritis Research & Therapy.

It’s not too often one sees Feb. 29 on the calendar, which makes it a perfect time for Rare Disease Day, dedicated to recognizing conditions that, in the words of the European Commission on Public Health, require “special combined efforts.”

Celltrion USA has submitted a Biologics License Application to the FDA for its tocilizumab biosimilar candidate CT-P47, according to a press release.

Dismantling the popular misconception that giant cell arteritis only occurs in white individuals is critical to providing timely diagnosis and care to all patients who may have the disease, regardless of race or ethnicity.

Patients with suspected giant cell arteritis should undergo an ultrasound as the first-line imaging method, according to updated EULAR recommendations published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

SAN DIEGO — A growing body of clinical trial data are increasingly guiding the treatment landscape for giant cell and Takayasu arteritis, according to a presenter at the 2023 Congress of Clinical Rheumatology West.

The 2017 FDA approval of tocilizumab as the first drug to specifically treat giant cell arteritis ushered in a new era in the management of the disease, with hopes that it would eliminate the need for steroids in the condition altogether.

MRI and PET scans are viable alternatives to ultrasound for cranial arteries in patients with suspected giant cell arteritis, according to a 2023 update of EULAR’s recommendations for imaging in large vessel vasculitis.

Polymyalgia rheumatica and giant cell arteritis can overlap and resemble one another in diagnosis and disease course, and understanding where one ends and the other begins is critical for rheumatologists and primary care providers alike.

The treatment target for patients with giant cell arteritis or polymyalgia rheumatica should be remission, with vascular damage prevention taking priority in patients with GCA, according to treat-to-target recommendations from EULAR.