The GCA Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Ear involvement in Giant Cell Arteritis
IRAS ID
216747
Contact name
Clive Kelly
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 29 days
Research summary
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) is a condition mainly seen in the over 70s. The symptoms involve stiffness around the head, neck and shoulders. Some patients later develop Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA), a more serious condition where arteries become inflamed (vasculitis), usually around the head and neck. GCA is also known as temporal arteritis due to the visible symptoms that appear around patients’ temples. Symptoms include aching and soreness around the temples and potentially vision loss. Many GCA patients additionally complain about hearing loss and/or imbalance (also known as vertigo). However, there is very little data to assess the frequency with which this occurs in GCA. This study is designed to assess the frequency of ear symptoms in GCA patients and compare them to patients with pure PMR (controls) where there is no evidence for such an association. If a link between ear symptoms and GCA is confirmed, we anticipate assessing the effect of early treatment on outcome. Confirmation of the association may help with earlier diagnosis of GCA.
REC name
South West - Cornwall & Plymouth Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/SW/0153
Date of REC Opinion
30 Aug 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion