Vasculitis & polymyalgia rheumatica
Diagnostic yield of facial artery ultrasound in addition to temporal and axillary artery ultrasound for the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis
Authors' conclusion
FacUS provides limited additional diagnostic yield when added to temporal and axillary artery imaging in suspected GCA but may be performed in selected patients with strong clinical suspicion and negative temporal ultrasound findings.
Study context
- Population
- Patients with suspected giant cell arteritis (GCA) who underwent standardised tempUS and axUS with both facial arteries also examined37 GCA, 32 other conditions
- Participants
- 69 patients
- Comparison
- FacUS added to tempUS and axUS vs tempUS and axUS
- Outcome
- Diagnostic accuracy (sensitivity, specificity) of facUS added to tempUS and axUS for GCA
Methodological detailsROC-curve analysis
- ROC-curve analysis
Performance
As reported in the abstract
Diagnostic accuracy for GCA, facUS cutoff >0.7 mm
| Test or model | Sensitivity | Specificity |
|---|---|---|
| tempUS + axUS + facUS | 97.3% (+8.1%) | 65.6% (−18.8%) |
tempUS + axUS + facUS
Sensitivity97.3% (+8.1%)
Specificity65.6% (−18.8%)
Further findings
FacUS-values >0.7 mm
- Patients with facUS >0.7 mm (26 GCA, 8 non-GCA)
- 34
- Patients with facUS >1.0 mm (17 GCA, 1 non-GCA)
- 18
Negative tempUS but positive facUS
- Patients with negative tempUS but positive facUS
- 11
- Of these, ultimately diagnosed with GCA
- 5
- Of these, isolated facial artery involvement
- 3
Original publication
Diagnostic yield of facial artery ultrasound in addition to temporal and axillary artery ultrasound for the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis. Clin Exp Rheumatol. Published 13 April 2026. doi:10.
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