Table 1.
Patient characteristics.
| Characteristic | GCA | GCA | Non-GCA | p-value a |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TAB-positive | TAB-negative | TAB-negative | ||
| (n = 30) | (n = 16) | (n = 22) | ||
| Gender (male/female) | 8/22 | 8/8 | 4/18 | 0.118 |
| Age at diagnosis [years] | 73 (55–89) | 73 (57–92) | 73 (58–87) | 0.475 |
| Symptom duration [days] b | 30 (2–180) | 21 (3–120) | 21 (5–365) c | 0.403 |
| CD3+ T lymphocytes [cells/mm2] | 226.7 (69.3–375)*** | 4.9 (1.3–10.3)*** | 1.3 (0–3.3) | <0.001 |
| CD4+ T lymphocytes [cells/mm2] | 159.3 (50.2–264.3)*** | 4.9 (1.7–11.5)*** | 1.6 (0–4) | <0.001 |
| CD8+ T lymphocytes [cells/mm2] | 96.5 (24.8–157.3)*** | 1.4 (0–3.3)** | 0.1 (0–2) | <0.001 |
| % CD8+ T lymphocytes d | 35 (27.1–42.4)*** | 19.4 (0–30) | 4.6 (0–38.5) | <0.001 |
| CD4+:CD8+ T lymphocyte ratio | 1.9 (1.4–2.7)*** | 3.3 (2.3–8.5) | 5.7 (1.6–10) | <0.001 |
| NFATC+ cells [cells/mm2] | 176.6 (49.1–300.6)*** | 5.1 (1.2–14)*** | 0 (0–3) | <0.001 |
| NFATC+:CD4+ cell ratio | 1.1 (0.6–1.4)*** | 0.9 (0.6–1.6)*** | 0 (0–1) | 0.062 |
| CD20+ B lymphocytes [cells/mm2] | 25.1 (3.5–167.5)*** | 0.8 (0–1.7)*** | 0 (0–0.3) | <0.001 |
| % CD20+ B lymphocytes e | 8.8 (3.1–29)*** | 9 (0–17.9)*** | 0 (0–7.6) | 0.678 |
| CD68+ macrophages [score] | 3 (1–4)*** | 1 (1–1)** | 0.5 (0–1) | <0.001 |
| MGCs [score] | 2.5 (0–4)*** | 0 | 0 | <0.001 |
| Eosinophil granulocytes [score] | 2 (0–3)*** | 0 | 0 | <0.001 |
| ESR [mm/h] | 84 (41–120) | 78 (28–130) | NA | 0.610 |
| CRP [mg/ml] | 71 (12–218) | 50 (7–214) | NA | 0.246 |
| Platelets [109/l] | 364.5 (190–589) | 321 (147–898) | NA | 0.760 |
| Hemoglobin [mg/ml] | 122.5 (99–140) | 119 (99–130) | NA | 0.429 |
| Fibrinogen [mg/ml] | 7.9 (4.9–9.4) | 8.4 (5.7–9.5) | NA | 0.470 |
| Constitutional symptoms; n (%) | 23/30 (77) | 11/16 (69) | NA | 0.565 |
| PMR; n (%) | 6/30 (20) | 3/16 (19) | NA | 0.920 |
| New headache; n (%) | 26/30 (87) | 11/16 (69) | NA | 0.149 |
| Jaw claudication; n (%) | 17/30 (57) | 0/16 (0) | NA | <0.001 |
| Ischemic stroke; n (%) | 0/30 (0) | 0/16 (0) | NA | 1.000 |
| GCA relapse; n (%) | 15/30 (50) | 4/16 (25) | NA | 0.116 |
| Visual disturbances; n (%) | 8/30 (27) | 4/16 (25) | NA | 0.903 |
| Permanent visual loss; n (%) | 2/30 (7) | 0/16 (0) | NA | 0.296 |
GCA, giant cell arteritis; TAB, temporal artery biopsy; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; CRP, C-reactive protein; MGC, multinucleated giant cell; PMR, polymyalgia rheumatica; NA, not applicable. Data are presented as median (range), unless otherwise specified. Data were evaluated using the Mann-Whitney U test. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. An asterisk indicates significance to the TAB-negative non-GCA group (**p < 0.01; ***p < 0.001).
Statistical significance between GCA patient groups.
Duration of symptoms prior GCA diagnosis.
Duration of symptoms, which were discarded as GCA after a complete patient work-up and follow-up.
Percentage of CD8+ T lymphocytes among all detected T lymphocytes constituting the inflammatory infiltrate.
Percentage of CD20+ B lymphocytes among all lymphocytes constituting the inflammatory infiltrate.