Clinical course of 602 patients with Takayasu's arteritis: comparison between Childhood-onset versus adult onset disease

OBJECTIVES: To describe the clinical profile of Asian Indian patients with Takayasu's arteritis (TAK) and to compare clinical features and outcome of childhood-onset Takayasu's arteritis (cTAK) with adult-onset TAK (aTAK). METHODS: Data related to clinical features and response to treatment of patients with cTAK (age of onset 5 years at presentation still continued to have elevated CRP suggesting continued and active inflammation warranting escalation or inititation of immunosuppression. CONCLUSION: Patients with cTAK are more likely to have arterial disease below the diaphragm, systemic inflammation and achieve remission. Disease of the aortic arch is more common in patients with aTAK. Longer duration of symptoms prior to initiation of immunosuppression, thereby leading to extensive disease and damage, reflects ongoing disease activity as the rule rather than exception in untreated TAK.