Polymyalgia rheumatica is a clinical syndrome affecting middle-aged and elderly persons and is characterized by periarthritic and muscular pain and stiffness particularly in the shoulder and hip girdles. Systemic symptoms are present, the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (E.S.R.) is greatly elevated, and the Waaler-Rose test is almost invariably negative. Suppression of symptoms with corticostero...

OBJECTIVE To quantify 18-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) accumulation in large vessels in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica by positron emission tomography (PET), and to compare these data with serological markers of inflammation. METHODS 13 untreated patients with active polymyalgia rheumatica underwent FDG positron emission tomography; eight were analysed in a second PET when in clinical remiss...

The first description of polymyalgia rheumatica is attributed to Dr William Bruce working in Strathpeffer Spa, Scotland, in 1888. His career, the history of the spa, and the original article are briefly described.

The association of bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP) with polymyalgia rheumatica is rare, and only one case has previously been described. This study reports on the case of an 80 yr-old male who presented with malaise, nonproductive cough and exertional dyspnoea for several weeks, along with a history of bilateral shoulder and pelvic girdle pain of several months' duration. T...

Polymyalgia rheumatica and temporal arteritis commonly present for the first time in older people. Guidelines for diagnosis, investigation and management are available but have largely been developed by rheumatologists from studies where older people have been excluded. It is not clear whether geriatricians care for a group of patients with different clinical presentations compared to those und...

Patients with polymyalgia rheumatica have been shown to have an increased risk of peripheral arterial disease on longitudinal followup. Possible explanations for this include premature atherosclerosis related to chronic inflammation, as with other inflammatory rheumatological conditions. Alternatively, polymyalgia rheumatica can be associated with vasculitis, even in the absence of clinical gia...