Blood Tests

• erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels usually elevated¹
• other blood test findings reported with giant cell arteritis include
  • anemia (hemoglobin < 12 g/dL) in about one-half of patients
  • thrombocytosis in about one-half of patients
  • leukocytosis in about one-quarter of patients
  • Reference - [16148728Medicine (Baltimore) 2005 Sep;84(5):277][160]
• vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may be elevated and play a role in pathogenesis, but clinical significance has not been established⁵
• individual blood tests appear to have low-to-moderate performance for diagnosis of giant cell arteritis