Vasculitis refers to a rare group of conditions where there is inflammation of blood vessels. There are various different types of vasculitis, which can be classified either according to the size of the blood vessels damaged or according to the part of the body affected, and also whether there is any underlying disease. It is also useful to know whether the patient has the ANCA (anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic) antibody in the blood. Vasculitis can be divided accordingly in various ways:
Classifications
- Whether it is localised or generalised
- Vessel size
- Underlying cause (e.g. drugs, infection, lupus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis)
- Whether the ANCA test is positive
There is a group of vasculitic conditions known as primary systemic vasculitis, so called because they affect the whole body (systemic), and are primary (there is no underlying condition). Examples of these conditions are Wegener’s granulomatosis, microscopic polyarteritis/polyangiitis and Churg-Strauss syndrome.
Vessel size | ANCA-positive | ANCA-negative |
---|---|---|
Large | Giant cell arteritis Takayasu’s arteritis |
|
Medium | Polyarteritis nodosa Kawasaki’s disease |
|
Small | Wegener’s granulomatosis Microscopic polyarteritis Churg-Strauss syndrome |
Henoch-Schonlein purpura Hypersensitivity vasculitis Cryoglobulinaemic vasculitis |