The main symptoms of vasculitis

Vasculitis is a group of diseases associated with inflammation and destruction of blood vessels. The article gives answers to questions about what are the symptoms of the disease, what is the cause of the disease, what are the methods of treatment and prevention.

Vasculitis, the photo of which you see below, is considered not a disease, but rather a syndrome that occurs with certain connective tissue diseases, for example, with systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis. Often it occurs in isolation, and the symptoms of vasculitis are not accompanied by a lesion of connective tissue.

The inflammatory process can develop in any blood vessel. With nodular erythema, nodular periarteritis, giant cell arteritis, Takayasu arteritis, Schenlein-Genoch syndrome, vasculitis is characterized by limited - only veins, large arteries, small arteries and capillaries, or any of them, for example, limbs or head, are affected.

Symptoms of vasculitis are not specific. Inflamed vessels can be accompanied by high body temperature, general weakness, decreased appetite and weight, skin rashes, hemorrhages, joint pains, swelling, swollen lymph nodes. The course of vasculitis can resemble infections, autoimmune diseases, tumor development, neuritis, which sometimes makes it difficult to diagnose it. To understand what can be the disease of vasculitis symptoms, a photo taken from specialized resources, clearly demonstrates them.

In most cases, the cause of this disease can not be established, only in certain cases a certain role in its development is played by hepatitis viruses. There are different versions of the causes of the disease. According to one of them, inflammation in the vessels develops as a result of an erroneous perception by the immune system of the tissues of blood vessels as an alien object and their attack. Cells of the immune system that cause inflammation surround the vessels, penetrate into their walls, thereby destroying and damaging the tissues and organs that were supplied with these vessels. Violation of blood supply to organs and nerves occurs either because of blockage of blood vessels, or as a result of excessive permeability of their walls. Insufficient supply of blood leads to the formation of ischemia in the organs, which can result in irreversible tissue damage.

Vasculitis can develop independently (primary vasculitis) and arise against a background of such diseases as meningitis, sepsis, psoriasis, etc. (secondary vasculitis). A lot of syndromes, invariably accompanied by inflammation of the walls of arteries of different calibers. For each affected area, in addition, there are symptoms of vasculitis. These factors greatly complicate the process of diagnosing systemic diseases of this kind. Therefore, the diagnosis is established in specialized centers on the basis of the results of numerous research methods: instrumental, immunological, chemical. Among them, complete urine analysis, angiography (vascular study), radiography, tomography, biopsy of damaged tissues.

The choice of methods of treatment of vasculitis depends on the specific diagnosis and causes of the disease. In most cases, prescribe the use of anticoagulants, antihistamines, corticosteroids, vitamin preparations, immunosuppressors, membrane stabilizers, cytostatics. In any case, if you notice symptoms of vasculitis, you should immediately consult a doctor.