American Journal of Neuroradiology 20:1983-1985 (11 1999)
© 1999 American Society of Neuroradiology
ARTICLE
The Acute Diagnosis of Takayasu's Arteritis Based on Helical CT Angiography of the Chest and Neck in the Emergency Room
a From the Departments of Radiology (L.W.P., S.D.L.) and Neurology (J.R., A.F.), University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL.
Summary: Recently, a young woman presented acutely with a left hemispheric stroke and differing blood pressures in the arms as her initial manifestation of Takayasu's arteritis. Helical CT angiography, performed to rule out aortic dissection, revealed a thickened wall of the aortic arch with stenoses and occlusions of the great vessels, suggesting the diagnosis. The sequence of imaging studies and findings in this unusually catastrophic presentation of a typically insidious disease are highlighted.