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The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) have developed new classification criteria for diagnosing giant cell arteritis (GCA). An international group of experts conducted detailed reviews of ≈750 confirmed cases of GCA and ≈750 cases of patients with other vasculitic and nonvasculitic disorders that can mimic GCA.
Multivariable analysis and expert consensus led to these classification criteria:
Age ≥50 is deemed an “absolute requirement” for diagnosing GCA (<1% of patients in this cohort were younger than 50).
Ten predictive criteria were identified; 6 were symptoms or physical exam findings, and 4 were laboratory, imaging, or biopsy findings.
Between 2 and 5 points were assigned …