What are the symptoms of vasculitis, and how is it diagnosed?
Symptoms related to vasculitis may vary, depending on the specific type of vasculitis. Often times, children with vasculitis will have nonspecific symptoms early in the disease such as fevers, fatigue, and weight loss. Many types of vasculitis have skin rashes associated, including Kawasaki’s disease, Henoch-Schnlein purpura, and others. Vasculitis can affect many different organs, including the brain, the lungs and respiratory system, the heart, the liver, the kidneys and the joints. Because of this fact, symptoms will vary depending on the organs involved. There is no single test that can diagnose vasculitis. Vasculitis often mimics other diseases such as infections and cancer, and these diseases should be looked for in patients who have similar symptoms to those described above. Laboratory tests used to aide in the diagnosis often include: a CBC (complete blood count), blood chemistries (including liver and kidney tests), inflammatory markers (ESR or erythrocyte sedmentation rate an
