Why is vasculitis so difficult to diagnose?

Condition analysis:
There are a number of vasculitic diseases and each can involve any number of organs in the body. In addition many of the symptoms the patient presents with are similar to many other illnesses or diseases. Vasculitis can mimic other diseases. As the treatment for vasculitis is by prescribing toxic drugs there are many diagnostic tests to be undertaken to rule out other diseases and to confirm the presence of vasculitis.

Instructions:
Remission Induction therapy - Usually requires a combination of immunosuppressive drugs to control the inflammation. The drugs given will vary according to the specific disease and the severity of the disease. These drugs are commonly high dose steroids (prednisolone) and additional treatment with drugs such as cyclophosphamide or methotrexate may be given.

In some types of vasculitis newer antibody treatments (eg rituximab or infliximab sometimes called "biologic therapies") are starting to replace the older treatments such as cyclophosphamide. Usually the amount of steroid treatment will be reduced quickly over the first few weeks and then more slowly. The common side effects of drugs used in remission induction phase are infections because of the suppression of the immune system. Often additional drugs will be given to protect against infection and other side effects of the treatment.