Abstract
Abstract Aim To assess if temporal artery biopsies (TABs) were carried out in accordance with American college of rheumatology (ACR) guidelines. To establish if there is correlation between ESR and histological samples positive for GCA. Method Retrospective chart review of all patients who underwent TAB in Sligo University hospital 2010-2020. Patients identified using histopathological department database. Results A total of one hundred and fifty-five patients underwent TAB (mean age 70.5yrs, 68% female, 32% male). 27 (17.4%) of samples were positive for GCA. 128 (82.6%) samples were negative for GCA in patients with a clinical diagnosis (P < 0.001). There was no correlation between ESR and biopsy result (r = 0.12). 107 (69%) met the guidelines for GCA. Conclusions The low numbers of positive samples may reflect a number of issues e.g., sample length, presence skip lesions, sampling patients already on steroid treatment. There are many new non-invasive modalities e.g., US doppler, which can diagnose GCA.
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