BEHاET’S DISEASE

Behçet’s disease (bd) which is classified among vasculitides is a systemic disease withvarious manifestations. it progress by attacks and remissions. till now, two nationwide surveys of bdfrom iran and japan and 4 major case series from turkey, korea, morocco and england have beenreported. clinical picture of bd is dominated by mucous membrane manifestations, including oralaphthosis - seen in 96.8% of patients in iran, 98.2% in japan, 100% in turkey, 97.5% in korea, 100%in morocco and 100% in england- and genital aphthosis which is seen less frequently- 65.3% in iran,73.2% in japan, 88.2% in turkey, 56.7% in korea, 83.5% in morocco and 89% in england. skinaphthosis is not frequent but it is the most characteristic lesion of bd. erythema nodosum is seen morefrequently in china and korea. ocular manifestations include anterior uveitis, posterior uveitis andretinal vasculitis. joint manifestations include arthralgia, monoarthritis, oligo/poly arthritis, andankylosing spondylitis. other presentations include neurological, gastrointestinal and cardiopulmonarymanifestations, vascular involvement, orchitis and epididymitis. erythrocyte sedimentation rate isusually elevated. urinary abnormalities are infrequent and transient. pathergy test was positive in 57.4%of patients in iran, 44% in japan, 57% in turkey, 40% in korea, 68% in morocco and 32% in england.lesions usually heal without sequela, except for eyes, brain, and vascular system. the major cause ofmorbidity is the ocular lesion, which leads to severe loss of vision or blindness.