10 Vasculitis Symptoms

By iliriana

Reviewed: Dr. Gromatzky

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Vasculitis includes a group of various uncommon diseases which are characterized by an inflammation of the blood vessels of the human body. This inflammation of the blood vessels causes alterations in their walls, scarring, weakening, narrowing and thickening of blood vessel walls.

Vasculitis can be either acute or chronic. Different types of vasculitis include: Behcet’s disease, Churg-Strauss syndrome, giant cell arteritis, Henoch-Schonlein purpura, Takayasu’s arteritis, Kawasaki disease, Wegener’s granulomatosis, Polyarteritis nodosa, Cryoglobulinemia, central nervous system vasculitis, and Buerger’s disease (which leads to vasculitis).

Vasculitis symptoms vary greatly and depend on the organs affected or from the severity of the blood vessels inflammation. Common vasculitis symptoms include:

Symptom #1: Skin Rash

Purplish red spots on the lower extremities are a common sign of vasculitis. These spots usually are felt by the fingertips and for this reason, they are commonly known as palpable purpura. Skin rash in cases of vasculitis as red spots results from the spillage of blood from the inflamed blood vessels into the skin. Purplish red spots tend to present in groups.

However, a variety of rashes can occur in cases of vasculitis, even though palpable purpura is most common. Repeated bouts of palpable purpura can lead to areas of hyperpigmentation on the affected parts of the skin.