To investigate the risk of cerebrovascular accident (CVA) among patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA).
We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies that reported relative risks, hazard ratios, or standardized incidence ratios comparing CVA risk in patients with GCA versus non-GCA comparators. Pooled risk ratio and 95% confidence interval were calculated using a random-effect, generic inverse variance method of DerSimonian and Laird.
Eight studies with 17,919 patients with GCA were identified and included in our data analysis. The pooled risk ratio of CVA in patients with GCA versus non-GCA controls was 1.40 (95% CI: 1.27-1.56). The statistical heterogeneity was low with an I
Our study indicates a significantly increased risk of CVA among patients with GCA.