Diagnostic validity of ultrasound including extra-cranial arteries in giant cell arteritis.

Detection of GCA by ultrasound should routinely include examinations of the TA and LV (at least the axillary and subclavian arteries) to improve diagnostic accuracy. More than 12% of patients in our cohort had isolated LV involvement. Key Points • Extracranial involvement in GCA is very common: half of patients have extracranial vasculitis and more than 12% isolated LV involvement that can be demonstrated with CDUS. • Adding a CDUS examination of LV to TA increased sensitivity (from 83.9 to 96.6%) and the negative predictive value (from 88.5 to 98.2%) for diagnosis of GCA. • In our cohort, if we only examined the axillary arteries, 12.2% of the CGA with LV involvement would not have been diagnosed. • We propose a CDUS protocol that includes examination of the TA and LV (at least the axillary and subclavian arteries) routinely in cases of suspected GCA.