Common Warning Signs Of Vasculitis

Vasculitis, sometimes called angiitis or arteritis, is an inflammation of the blood cells that can cause the blood vessel walls to thicken, narrow, or scar. These changes can eventually lead to limited blood flow, which causes irreversible damage to an individual's organs and other tissues. Although vasculitis is rare, anyone can be impacted by this disease. Treatment and how long the symptoms will last depend on the type of vasculitis a person has.

The signs of vasculitis vary depending on how restricted the blood flow is to an individual's body. Those with consistent, recurring symptoms are encouraged to contact their physician to determine if vasculitis is the cause and discuss treatment options.

Aches And Pains

Vasculitis can cause aches and pains in a variety of different areas of the body and can lead to a decline in motor function. The inflammation caused by vasculitis can lead joints to swell and emit pain. The severity of the pain will, of course, depend on the amount of inflammation, with some individuals experiencing only minor aches to others having debilitating arthritis.

Along with joint pain, vasculitis can also cause muscle aches. These muscles may become weaker over time due to patients avoiding physical activity to reduce pain. Vasculitis affects the eyes as well, not only impeding vision but also causing eyes to become red and very painful. Those experiencing symptoms related to the eyes are strongly encouraged to see a physician immediately because if this particular symptom continues, blindness may occur. Headaches are also frequently common with vasculitis.

Nerve Problems

Individuals with vasculitis often experience nerve problems as well. When the nerves become inflamed, it often leads to a feeling of pins and needles (tingling) in the arms and legs, as well as pain and progressive weakness. This weakness can lead to patients being unable to complete simple, everyday tasks, such as grasping a writing utensil or picking up a light object. Patients can also have varying degrees of difficulty in walking. These symptoms may be sporadic or consistent, depending on which nerves are being affected. Nerve pain is a common symptom of a form of vasculitis called cryoglobulinemia, which also affects the heart, lungs, and the skin, causing a rash.

Weight Loss

Weight loss is also a sign of vasculitis. This loss may be attributed to the individual's loss of appetite as well as the location of where the inflammation is occurring. Patients suffering from polyarteritis nodosa and Takayasu's arteritis typically will have the have a dramatic decrease in weight resulting in a feeling of overall malaise and apathy.

Henoch-Schonlein purpura, which is more common in kids, attacks the bowels, leading to loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting. While not necessarily life-threatening on its own accord, accompanied by some of the other symptoms of the various forms of vasculitis, weight loss can cause troubling effects on an affected individual's body and motor functions.

Fever

Individuals with vasculitis may experience a fever as a symptom of the disease. As the disease attacks healthy tissue, the body attempts to fight off the attack causing body temperature to rise. A consistent fever is a common symptom in all the various forms of vasculitis. It can lead to not only physical fatigue but mental fatigue as well. Adults with a consistent temperature over one hundred degrees Fahrenheit and children with a consistent temperature over 99.5 degrees coupled with the other symptoms discussed should seek a physician's advice.

Night Sweats

Night sweats are another common symptom of vasculitis. While most humans occasionally sweat during the night, it is typically due to environmental factors, such as hot weather and a lack of air conditioning. Patients with vasculitis will typically experience nighttime hot flashes not related to the environment. These hot flashes result in excessive sweating, which at times may lead the patient to have to change their pajamas or bedsheets. It can also lead to feeling fatigued due to interrupted sleep and an overall feeling of unease or discomfort.

It should be noted excessive sweating during the night is a common symptom of other issues, most notably menopause, and is not attributable to vasculitis on its own. But, as with the other symptoms mentioned previously, if an individual is experiencing night sweats consistently, especially in conjunction with other symptoms, they should speak with their physician.

Rash

One of the most characteristic symptoms indicative of vasculitis is a rash on the skin. These rashes occur when there is a small blood hemorrhage into the mucous membrane, skin, or serosal surface. The inflammation of small blood vessels close to the skin in those affected by vasculitis causes damage the blood vessel walls. The walls become weak and may begin to leak blood or burst. These types of rashes are given a name based on their size. Small red dots on the skin less than five millimeters in diameter are called petechiae. When these dots are a bit larger and have a diameter of between five and nine millimeters, the lesion is called purpura.

When the diameter of the blood spot exceeds nine millimeters, it is called ecchymoses. These rashes do not blanch or change color when pressure is placed on them. These blood spot rashes usually appear in clusters on a patient's back, buttocks, lower extremities, hands, and inside area of the forearms. Vasculitis can cause these rashes to be ongoing or occur only once. Purpuric lesions can last for a duration of many weeks and may leave behind dark spots or scarring. Severe cases of vasculitis in deeper tissues may manifest in the form of ulcers, nodules, and livedo reticularis.

Headache

Some forms of vasculitis can manifest in affected individuals as headaches. These headaches are a result of the effects the disease has on the central nervous system and respiratory function. Headaches are seen most frequently in systemic necrotizing arteritis, systemic collagen diseases, primary central nervous system vasculitis, and granulomatous vasculitis. Headaches occur when inflammation occurs in the blood vessel walls of the vessels responsible for nourishing the peripheral nerves, spinal cord, and brain. Vasculitis can also cause headaches through a more indirect mechanism by the effects it has on the blood vessels in other organs.

Inflammation of blood vessels around the nasal cavity and sinuses can cause the sinuses to become clogged and result in severe pain. This pain often radiates to the front of the head, manifesting in the form of what is commonly known as a sinus headache. Allergic rhinitis can cause the nose and sinuses to become inflamed and swollen, resulting in a headache caused by nasal congestion. In addition, vasculitis patients often have high blood pressure, which is closely associated with headaches because the blood vessels do not have the ability to dilate properly to improve blood flow.

Eye Inflammation

An individual who experiences eye inflammation may be affected by vasculitis. All blood vessels in the body have the potential to be affected by vasculitis. Conjunctivitis occurs when the thin transparent tissue layer lining the interior surface of the eyelid and overlays the white region of the eye or conjunctiva becomes inflamed. Conjunctivitis can be caused by vasculitis associated eosinophilic diffusion to the area, development of granulomas, and conjunctiva vessel microangiopathy inflammation. Vasculitis can affect the small blood vessels that supply the sclera (white part of the eye), resulting in scleritis.

Retinal vasculitis or inflammation of the blood vessels that branch from the retinal artery can also be the result of an individual's vasculitis. Peripheral ulcerative keratitis is a severe type of inflammation that occurs in the cornea that can be the result of inflammation of the blood vessels supplying the tear-producing mechanisms. Vasculitis can cause severe swelling and inflammation in the orbit region that results in bulging of the eye. Vasculitis is also known to cause inflammation in the vessels of the eyelid, resulting in lid edema.

Blood Clots

The formation of blood clots can be a symptom indicative of vasculitis. The mechanism behind this occurrence is thought to be associated with the close relationship between the immune system and coagulation processes in the body. Inflammation has a modulating influence on thrombotic responses through several mechanisms. It upregulates procoagulant or stimulates inactive protein synthesis into a clotting enzyme. Inflammation also suppresses fibrinolysis or stops the breakdown process of fibrin in clots no longer needed in the body.

Furthermore, inflammatory responses downregulate anticoagulants or naturally occurring proteins in the body responsible for stopping the formation of inappropriate blood clots and inhibiting the extension of existing clots. Because vasculitis is a disease characterized by inflammation of the blood vessels, the inflammatory components are in direct contact with coagulation components. This mechanism may result in the inappropriate formation of clots, the extension of existing clots, and stop the breakdown of clots that are no longer needed. All of these processes can cause blood clots to float freely around the body in the vessels that can become lodged.

Blurred Or Double Vision

Blurred or double vision are symptoms that may occur in individuals affected by vasculitis. Inflammation and swelling of certain blood vessels in an individual's head as a result of vasculitis can cause a blood flow obstruction to the nerves responsible for keeping the eyes aligned properly. When these nerves do not tell certain muscles to move the eyes, they do not report the same image to the brain. This malfunction called cranial nerve palsy results in what is known as double vision. Inflammation of the blood vessels in the retina (retinal vasculitis) is a common mechanism in vasculitis that results in vision loss or blurry vision. Blurry vision can also be caused by uveitis.

The bundle of nerve fibers responsible for transmitting visual information from the eyes to the brain (the optic nerve) is supplied by numerous small blood vessels that intertwine with it. Vasculitis can cause these blood vessels to become swollen and inflamed, resulting in reduced blood flow to the optic nerve. When the optic nerve does not receive an adequate amount of blood with nutrients and oxygen, it cannot perform its function correctly. This process results in inflammation of the optic nerve fibers, vision loss, and blurry vision.