Fever and weight loss in a 71-year-old woman
History
71-year-old woman with 8 weeks of evening fevers to 38.4 °C, 6 kg weight loss and night sweats. CRP 96 mg/L, ESR 88 mm/h, normocytic anaemia. No headache, jaw claudication or visual symptoms; mild shoulder stiffness. Blood cultures, echocardiography and contrast CT of the chest, abdomen and pelvis are unremarkable. No glucocorticoids so far. FDG PET/CT requested for fever of unknown origin.
Step 1 · The PET/CT
The MIPs show smooth, continuous linear uptake along the thoracic and abdominal aorta and its main branches; there is no focal lesion elsewhere. What pattern is shown?