Takayasu's arteritis in a young Caucasian female: case report and review

We report a case of a 24-year-old Caucasian woman presenting with fatigue, weight loss, a cardiac murmur, anaemia and biochemical markers of inflammation due to Takayasu's arteritis (TA), a vasculitis of the aorta and large vessels that typically affects young women. The rarity of the disease, the great variability in presentation together with the absence of specific symptoms as well as the absence of specific biochemical markers, makes early diagnosis difficult. Besides (magnetic resonance) arteriography, new promising diagnostic tools are discussed, including transoesophageat echocardiography (TEE) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET). Nevertheless, a high index of suspicion remains the key to an early diagnosis, and hence a better prognosis, of TA.