ANCA-associated large vessel compromise

Excerpt

The recent report by Carels et al. [1] adds to the increasing number of cases of clinically significant large vessel involvement in antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis. At least three additional cases have been reported after their review. Wiatr et al. [2] reported the case of a 30-year-old woman with ANCA-positive Wegener’s granulomatosis with aortic (peri)aortitis without narrowing or obliteration of the lumen. We recently reported a case of (peri)aortitis in a 50-year-old woman with microscopic polyangiitis which initially presented as a mediastinal mass and was later complicated by fatal aortic dissection and rupture [3]. Similarly, at least three cases of medium-sized vessel involvement and rupture in ANCA-associated vasculitis have recently been reported [4‐6]. …