Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy in a patient with giant cell arteritis

This report describes the case of a young woman presenting with signs and symptoms of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension who underwent pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE) with concomitant coronary artery bypass. She died in the intensive care unit 1 day postoperatively. At autopsy the patient was found to have giant cell arteritis of the pulmonary arteries and ascending aorta. It is important to differentiate this disease from …