A 64-year-old Caucasian female presents to your office with headache followed by sudden onset of blindness in her right eye. She was recently admitted to the hospital for fever, pelvic and shoulder girdle pain and weight loss. This patient's condition is most likely caused by:

Question

A 64-year-old Caucasian female presents to your office with headache followed by sudden onset of blindness in her right eye.  She was recently admitted to the hospital for fever, pelvic and shoulder girdle pain and weight loss.  This patient's condition is most likely caused by:

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Temporal arteritis is an inflammatory condition that affects the walls of medium-sized and large arteries. On light microscopic exam, granulomas are seen in the media of the arteries, consisting of mononuclear infiltrates and multinucleated giant cells. Due to the characteristic histologic features, this condition is also called giant cell vasculitis. The changes in the arteries are segmental: abnormal areas are interspersed by segments of normal-appearing arterial wall. Affected segments cause narrowing of the vessel with a decrease in blood supply to the perfused areas. The median age of onset of the temporal arteritis is 65 years. Commonly reported symptoms include: Educational Objective: Polymyalgia rheumatica occurs in more than half of patients with temporal arteritis. It is characterized by neck, torso, shoulder, and pelvic girdle pain and morning stiffness. Fatigue, fever and weight loss may also occur. Monocular vision loss is a common complication of temporal arteritis.

A 64-Year-Old Caucasian Female Presents to Your Office with Headache