Clinical Implications of the Age Threshold in the 2022 ACR/EULAR Classification Criteria for Takayasu Arteritis: A Real-World Study of Patients Aged over 61 Years

Background/Objectives: The age item of the 2022 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) criteria for Takayasu arteritis (TAK) (the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria) limits the reclassification of TAK among patients aged over 61 who were classified as TAK according to the 1990 ACR criteria. Therefore, we evaluated the clinical significance of the age item of the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria.

Methods

We included 22 previously TAK-diagnosed patients aged over 61 (TAK patient aged >61 years) and 41 TAK-reclassified patients aged 50–60 (controls) in this study and retrospectively reviewed their medical records. We compared the satisfied items of the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria between the two groups and further investigated whether these 22 TAK patients aged >61 years fulfilled the criteria for other relevant diseases.