Giant cell arteritis is a systemic inflammatory vasculitis, typically involving the superficial temporal arteries, but with possible ischemic and hemorrhagic cerebrovascular complications.
The case is reported of a patient with a clinical picture of giant cell arteritis, who had multiple occupational exposures to various infectious agents.
His initial favourable progress was followed by an atypical outcome. Despite immunosuppressive treatment, he developed fatal subarachnoid and intracerebral haemorrhages, possibly due to rupture of a microaneurysm of the posterior cerebral artery.