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Temporal arteritis, also known as giant cell arteritis, can cause headaches, jaw pain, fever, weight loss, fatigue, vision changes, muscle stiffness, aneurysms, and strokes. Symptoms are often vague and nonspecific, and can include polymyalgia rheumatica. Vision problems are a common manifestation and can lead to permanent blindness if not treated appropriately. Other possible symptoms include neurological symptoms, arm claudication, susceptibility to upper respiratory tract infections, and aortic aneurysms.
Temporal arteritis (TA), also known as giant cell arteritis (GCA), can cause a number of different symptoms. The most common manifestations of this disease are headache, jaw pain, fever, weight loss, fatigue, vision changes, and muscle stiffness. Other rarer, but life-threatening temporal arteritis symptoms can include aneurysms and strokes. Symptoms associated with this inflammatory disease often begin gradually and progress slowly over time.
One of the most common symptoms of temporal arteritis is pain in the head and neck region. About two-thirds of AT patients complain of headaches. Additionally, about half of patients with this condition develop jaw claudication, which causes pain associated with chewing or moving the jaw. Some patients may also have sore throat and tongue pain. Others have skin tenderness over the area of the temporal arteries, which are located near the temples.
Often, the symptoms of temporal arteritis are vague and nonspecific. Many patients develop recurrent fevers, unexplained weight loss, and fatigue. These systemic symptoms could indicate any number of diseases or conditions. Physicians caring for patients with these disorders often need to understand more about the patient’s medical history, age, risk factors, and coexisting symptoms to make the diagnosis of temporal arteritis.
Vision problems are another manifestation of temporal arteritis that patients commonly experience. A variety of visual symptoms may develop, including short-term loss of part of the visual field, double vision, and complete loss of vision in one or both eyes. The symptoms of vision loss in patients with temporal arteritis are concerning, as these patients could end up with permanent blindness if not treated appropriately.
A medical condition called polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is commonly associated with temporal arteritis. This condition causes muscle problems, including pain or stiffness in the shoulders, neck, and hips. Often these symptoms worsen in the morning and may be associated with subjective weakness. Not all cases of PMR are associated with AT, and not all patients with AT have PMR symptoms. However, approximately 40-50% of patients with temporal arteritis have coexisting PMR.
Although the most frequent temporal arteritis symptoms include head or neck pain, nonspecific systemic symptoms, vision changes, and PMR symptoms, other manifestations of the condition are also possible. For example, AT can cause neurological symptoms such as hearing loss, transient ischemic attacks – where blood supply is temporarily reduced, and strokes. Some patients have arm claudication, which is pain that occurs when the arm is moved. Many patients with TA are highly susceptible to upper respiratory tract infections such as the common cold. Occasionally patients can develop aortic aneurysms, which is a malformation of blood vessels that can be life-threatening if it causes the affected vessels to rupture.
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