A 9‐year retrospective analysis of 418 consecutive temporal artery biopsies (TAB): a surgical perspective of patients treated in a UK district general hospital referral service. (24th May 2016) - Bharadwaj, G.
Abstract: Aim: Temporal artery biopsy (TAB) is a gold standard investigation in the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA). We explored the relationship of the specimen length and biopsy results before and after the establishment of Fife GCA referral protocols in 2010. Materials and Methods: A retrospective review of TAB carried out between the year 2005–2013 was carried out. The biopsy results were analysed for length of the specimen and diagnostic outcome. Results: A total of 418 biopsies were performed from 2005 to 2013 inclusive. Four hundred and nine biopsies were eligible for study and nine specimen were excluded as they were non‐arterial. Seventy‐three biopsies (17.8%) were reported positive. Average length of specimen in our study was 13.15 mm. Mean specimen length of positive cases was less than that for negative cases (difference in means = −3.7, 95% confidence interval −4.9 to −2.6 mm, P < 0.001). There is evidence that the mean length of the sample increased after the introduction of the guidelines in 2010 and did not affect the percentage of positive results ( r = −0.18, P = 0.64). Conclusion: TAB is an invasive procedure, and our results indicated that the positive outcomes were low (17.8%). After introduction of local protocols, the specimen length increased but not the percentage of positive results.