Medical researchers have found an unlikely ally in their quest to tackle a crippling disease which causes blindness, strokes and death: the humble chewing gum.
Researchers from the University of Sydney's Save Sight Institute say they've discovered a simple chewing gum test, which could hold the key to identifying and treating Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA).
The condition is caused by the inflammation of the lining of arteries in the head, restricting blood flow.
It is most common among people aged over 50 and can be hard to diagnose.
Symptoms can include headaches, scalp tenderness, jaw pain and vision problems.
But early symptoms are often subtle and found in other diseases, researchers say.
They point to claudication of jaw muscles - a cramping pain caused by inadequate arterial blood flow - as a specific identifier of GCA which has no specific test to differentiate it from over causes of jaw pain.
Enter the chewing gum.
Researchers have found that chewing gum at a rate of one chew per second can reproduce a patient's pain and prompt further blood and biopsy tests to confirm the diagnosis.
In a letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers presented two cases where their chewing gum test allowed clinicians to better characterise jaw pain, confirm a diagnosis and successfully treat both patients.
Save Sight Institute director Peter McCluskey said GCA was one of the most common causes of blindness in older people.
"Not only can it send you blind but it can kill you," Dr McCluskey said.
"It can also affect vision extremely quickly ... it's a very serious condition which requires rapid and correct diagnosis."
Further research is being undertaken to validate the chewing gum tests, incorporating specialists from dentistry, nuclear medicine and rheumatology.
