Making the Diagnosis
Temporal arteritis is diagnosed by a thorough physical examination and by
taking a biopsy (tissue sample). This means removing a section of the affected
arteries. Usually, a couple of centimeters are removed from the temporal artery,
sometimes from both sides of the forehead. Taking two samples can give a more
reliable diagnosis. It's important to distinguish arteritis from the cardiovascular
diseases that are more usually responsible for narrowing of the arteries, because
the treatments are quite different.
Blood tests also reveal the presence of autoimmune disease. Erythrocytes,
or red blood cells, are oxygen-carrying blood cells that behave differently
in people with autoimmune disease. Such diseases can be detected by putting
a blood sample in a vertical tube and measuring the rate at which erythrocytes
settle to the bottom. This is called the erythrocyte sedimentation rate
(ESR).