There are so many abbreviations in the quest... - Vasculitis UK
There are so many abbreviations in the questions people ask. There are a lot that I don't understand. Is there anywhere I can find answers.
Hi Magnolia
I prepared a list of abbreviations for the Spring Newsletter (due out soon) but ran out of space and couldn't include it. You will find some abbreviations for the various diseases and for the drugs and procedures on the V-UK website. Maybe what we need is a special page on the website with abbreviations. Meanwhile have a look at: vasculitis.org.uk/about-vas... and click on the various blue side links.
Patricia Ann
Where the abbreviation is short for the type of vasculitis you can often identify it by googling the abbreviation plus the word vasculitis. In fact, googling the abbreviation alone will often bring up the answer but adding a suitable word so it is in context will help a lot.
I'm as guilty of using abbreviations as others I know so yours is a timely reminder because it can be very confusing. For example, giant cell arteritis (GCA) is sometimes known as temporal arteritis and called TA - but another form of vasculitis called Takayashu's arteritis is also often referred to as TA. TA and vasculitis wouldn't sort that one out! Also different countries use different abbreviations.
The best way to deal with it it the way scientists do in papers - the first time you use it in a post you write it in full and the short version in brackets). Then you don't need to keep writing the whole lot!
Thank you for your reply.
I have joked a few times this condition is quite the alphabet soup ! I keep looking up again and again and am starting to understand some- a website ' glossary' page of vascie abbreviations for types, side effects and treatments etc would be great! I've been writing my own in a note app on my tablet - it's like learning a language!
Dear 'everyone' (mainly John perhaps)
In light of the comments, made by Magnolia, can we not put a full list of abbreviations in one of the news letters? I confess that I struggle with some of them and, I think that, I know the subject quite well. I might be helpful to list the commonly used rugs too, plus their abbreviations. (Why is 'abbreviation' such a long word????) Also extremely helpful might be common (by that I mean very, very common) side effects. Advagraf- Tacrolimus- produces the 'shakes', to a more-er, or lesser degree, in virtually all patients.(This is an anti-rejection drug, used by kidney/liver transplant patients) This is, in fact, so common it is know as the 'Tacrolimus Shakes'- the only saving grace is it tends to wear off, after a few weeks/months. Anyway I digress, typical me!
Can we get our heads together, on this? I can't yet I'm away for the week, starting tomorrow (any excuse!)
Please do let me know what you all think of this, as an idea, maybe we could extend it to 'technical' terms, for surgical procedures?
Anyway think about it, please.
AndrewT
Wouldn't a pinned question be the best place to put it so it is on the "front page" so to say? As I say - given the queries I'd be happy to help find the answers. A lifetime of the NHS and working in a related field seems to have trained my google well! Unfortunately I'm about to have to train a new computer 
There is another question today asking the same thing.
Many of the abbreviations can be found in the Vasculitis Route Map, courtesy of the Vasculitis UK Shop. Hope this helps?
