American College of Rheumatology Criteria for the Diagnosis of Vasculitis
Authors: Jaya K. Rao
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1999)

Letters18 May 1999American College of Rheumatology Criteria for the Diagnosis of VasculitisJaya K. Rao, MD, MHS, Nancy B. Allen, MD, and Theodore Pincus, MDJaya K. Rao, MD, MHSRoudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center; Indianapolis, IN 46202 (Rao)Duke University Medical Center; Durham, NC 27710 (Allen)Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; Nashville, TN 37232 (Pincus)Search for more papers by this author, Nancy B. Allen, MDRoudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center; Indianapolis, IN 46202 (Rao)Duke University Medical Center; Durham, NC 27710 (Allen)Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; Nashville, TN 37232 (Pincus)Search for more papers by this author, and Theodore Pincus, MDRoudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center; Indianapolis, IN 46202 (Rao)Duke University Medical Center; Durham, NC 27710 (Allen)Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; Nashville, TN 37232 (Pincus)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-130-10-199905180-00007 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:We appreciate the insightful letters from the perspective of a practicing clinician (Dr. Gelfand) and clinical epidemiologists (Dr. Heller and colleagues). Regarding Dr. Gelfand's questions, our study included consecutive patients who were being evaluated for a possible vasculitis by rheumatologists. In our patients, a spectrum of conditions that make up the differential diagnosis of vasculitis (for example, infections and cancer) were ultimately diagnosed. Overall, the prevalence of vasculitis in our study sample was 26%, but the ACR criteria performed poorly for diagnosis. Their performance as diagnostic criteria would probably be even worse in clinical situations in which a ...References1. Khan MA, Khan MK. Diagnostic value of HLA-B27 testing in ankylosing spondylitis and Reiter's syndrome. Ann Intern Med. 1982;96:70-6. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Rao JK, Allen NB, Feussner JR, Weinberger M. A prospective study of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (c-ANCA) and clinical criteria in diagnosing Wegener's granulomatosis. Lancet. 1995;346:926-31. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Fries JF, Hochberg MC, Medsger TA, Hunder GG, Bombardier C. Criteria for rheumatic disease. Different types and different functions. The American College of Rheumatology Diagnostic and Therapeutic Committee. Google Scholar4. Pincus T, Callahan LF. How many types of patients meet classification criteria for rheumatoid arthritis? J Rheumatol. 1994;21:1385-9. MedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Jaya K. Rao, MD, MHS; Nancy B. Allen, MD; Theodore Pincus, MDAffiliations: Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center; Indianapolis, IN 46202 (Rao)Duke University Medical Center; Durham, NC 27710 (Allen)Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; Nashville, TN 37232 (Pincus) PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoLimitations of the 1990 American College of Rheumatology Classification Criteria in the Diagnosis of Vasculitis Jaya K. Rao , Nancy B. Allen , and Theodore Pincus American College of Rheumatology Criteria for the Diagnosis of Vasculitis Stephen G. Gelfand American College of Rheumatology Criteria for the Diagnosis of Vasculitis Israel Heller , Aharon Isakov , and Marcel Topilsky Metrics 18 May 1999Volume 130, Issue 10Page: 862KeywordsAnkylosing spondylitisBayesian methodClinical epidemiologyPopulation statisticsProgressive diseasesRheumatoid arthritisRheumatologyVasculitis ePublished: 15 August 2000 Issue Published: 18 May 1999 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 1999 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...