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© Dirk Biddle
A number of diagnostic imaging techniques are utilised for the vasculitides. These include angiograms (arteriograms), computed axial tomography (CT or CAT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
These imaging techniques may diagnostically distinguish some vasculitides by the presence of granuloma, a mass or nodule of chronically inflamed tissue with granulations that is usually associated with an infective process (Vasculitides with granuloma include Wegener’s disease, Churg-Strauss syndrome, Giant cell arteritis and Takayasu’s arteritis. Those without include Microscopic polyangiitis and Polyarteritis nodosa) or by the morphological characteristics of affected veins or arteries (for example the presence of aneurisms, narrowing, or blockages).
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