A Rare Case of Extracranial Giant Cell Arteritis in a Patient With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Oscar Vicente Vergara-Serpa; Liliana Margarita Vega Fernández; Yuleidis Del Carmen Mozo Polo; Carlos Alberto Agudelo; Marta Juliana Mantilla; Sandra Pulido; Juan Camilo Santacruz

doi:10.7759/cureus.71634

A Rare Case of Extracranial Giant Cell Arteritis in a Patient With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Cureus. 2024 Oct 16;16(10):e71634. doi: 10.7759/cureus.71634. eCollection 2024 Oct.

Authors

Oscar Vicente Vergara-Serpa¹, Liliana Margarita Vega Fernández², Yuleidis Del Carmen Mozo Polo³, Carlos Alberto Agudelo⁴, Marta Juliana Mantilla⁵, Sandra Pulido⁶, Juan Camilo Santacruz⁷

Affiliations

¹ Rheumatology Department, Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín, COL.
² Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Libre, Barranquilla, COL.
³ Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Simón Bolívar, Barranquilla, COL.
⁴ Rheumatology Department, Clínica las Américas Auna, Medellín, COL.
⁵ Rheumatology Department, Centro de Investigación en Reumatología y Especialidades Médicas (CIREEM), Bogotá, COL.
⁶ Rheumatology Department, Centros Médicos Colsanitas, Bogotá, COL.
⁷ Spondyloarthropathies Research Group, Universidad de La Sabana, Chía, COL.

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease that affects multiple organs, and its coexistence with Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA) is extremely rare. We present, to our knowledge, the first reported case of a 56-year-old woman with SLE and extracranial GCA who presented with chest pain as the cardinal symptom. The diagnosis was subsequently confirmed by imaging studies, ruling out Takayasu arteritis and SLE-related vasculitis. She required treatment with glucocorticoids and tocilizumab, showing a satisfactory evolution. Accurate diagnosis was key to preventing serious vascular complications and achieving favorable clinical recovery.

Keywords: aneurysm; giant cell arteritis; glucocorticoids; systemic lupus erythematosus; vasculitis.

Publication types

Case Reports