Multimodality imaging to assess diagnosis and evaluate complications of large vessel arteritis

Ayaz Aghayev; Britanny Weber; Tiago Lins de Carvalho; Andor W J M Glaudemans; Pieter H Nienhuis; Kornelis S M van der Geest; Riemer H J A Slart

doi:10.1016/j.nuclcard.2024.101864

Multimodality imaging to assess diagnosis and evaluate complications of large vessel arteritis

J Nucl Cardiol. 2024 Apr 23:101864. doi: 10.1016/j.nuclcard.2024.101864. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ayaz Aghayev¹, Britanny Weber², Tiago Lins de Carvalho¹, Andor W J M Glaudemans³, Pieter H Nienhuis⁴, Kornelis S M van der Geest⁵, Riemer H J A Slart⁶

Affiliations

¹ Cardiovascular Imaging Program, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
² Cardiovascular Imaging Program, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
³ Medical Imaging Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
⁴ Medical Imaging Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands; Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
⁵ Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
⁶ Medical Imaging Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands; Department of Biomedical Photonic Imaging, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands. Electronic address: r.h.j.a.slart@umcg.nl.

PMID: 38663459
DOI: 10.1016/j.nuclcard.2024.101864

Abstract

Different types of vasculitis can be distinguished according to the blood vessel's size that is preferentially affected: large-vessel, medium-vessel, and small-vessel vasculitides. Giant cell arteritis (GCA) and Takayasu's arteritis (TAK) are the main forms of large-vessel vasculitis, and may lead to lumen narrowing. Clinical manifestations of arterial narrowing on the short- and long term include vision loss, stroke, limb ischaemia and heart failure. Imaging tools are well established diagnostic tests for large-vessel vasculitis and may aid therapy monitoring in selected cases, while providing important information regarding the occurrence of vascular damage, tissue and organ complications. This review aims to provide the current status of multimodality imaging for diagnosis and identification of vascular complications in the field of large vessel vasculitis.

Keywords: Large vessel vasculitis; PET; complications; future trends; multimodality imaging.

Publication types

Review