The Young and the Breathless

An 18-year-old woman presented with a 2-month history of headaches, midscapular pain, and oral ulcers, which progressed to dyspnea and chest tightness. Diagnostic workup revealed severe aortic regurgitation due to inflammatory aortitis, later identified as Takayasu’s arteritis. The case highlights the diagnostic challenges of this rare large-vessel vasculitis, its nonspecific early symptoms, and the importance of multidisciplinary management, including immunosuppressive therapy and surgical intervention (valve-sparing aortic-root replacement).

An 18-year-old woman presented with a 2-month history of headaches, midscapular pain, and oral ulcers, which progressed to dyspnea and chest tightness. Diagnostic workup revealed severe aortic regurgitation due to inflammatory aortitis, later identified as Takayasu’s arteritis. The case highlights the diagnostic challenges of this rare large-vessel vasculitis, its nonspecific early symptoms, and the importance of multidisciplinary management, including immunosuppressive therapy and surgical intervention (valve-sparing aortic-root replacement).