Childhood-onset Takayasu arteritis and immunodeficiency: case-based review

Takayasu arteritis (TAK) has been rarely reported in patients with immunodeficiency. In this review, we present two cases with childhood-onset TAK (c-TAK) and primary immunodeficiency while reviewing similar cases in the literature. We reviewed the data for our two pediatric patients with c-TAK and primary immunodeficiency. We also reviewed the literature for patients with c-TAK and immunodeficiency from the inceptions of the databases up to November 2021. A 14-year-old patient had lipopolysaccharide-sensitive beige-like anchor (LRBA) deficiency, and a 16-year-old had X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency (X-linked SCID). During the follow-up, they developed findings suggestive of vasculitides such as hypertension, elevation in acute phase reactants, weakness, and weight loss. Thoracoabdominal computed tomography angiography revealed findings consistent with vasculitis involving the aorta and its major branches. Patients were diagnosed with c-TAK, and corticosteroids were given to both patients in the treatment. We identified 11 articles describing 17 TAK patients with immunodeficiency in our literature search. Two of the patients with c-TAK were infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), another patient had Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, and the other had idiopathic CD4 + T lymphocytopenia. Nine adult patients with TAK were infected with HIV, three patients had common variable immunodeficiency disorder (CVID), and the other had STAT1 gain-of-function mutation. Clinicians should consider that immunodeficiencies may be accompanied by vasculitic conditions such as TAK. Hypertension, increased inflammatory markers, and constitutional symptoms may be red flags for the development of TAK.