Behçet's disease and renal failure.

Area of Science:

• Nephrology
• Rheumatology
• Internal Medicine

Background:

• Behçet's disease (BD) is a multisystem vasculitis with potential renal involvement.
• End-stage renal disease (ESRD) in BD patients presents unique clinical challenges.
• Understanding BD prevalence and characteristics in dialysis populations is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of Behçet's disease (BD) in Turkish dialysis patients.
• To describe the clinical features of BD patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD).
• To assess the impact of ESRD on BD activity and analyze existing literature on BD and renal failure.

Main Methods:

• A nationwide survey of 331 dialysis centers in Turkey collected data on 20,596 patients.
• Questionnaires gathered information on BD prevalence and clinical characteristics of BD-ESRD patients.
• Systematic literature review of PubMed and Web of Science for BD and renal failure.

Main Results:

• The prevalence of BD among Turkish dialysis patients was found to be 0.07% (14 patients).
• No new BD manifestations occurred after initiating hemodialysis.
• Analysis of prior studies identified 67 patients with renal failure due to BD.

Conclusions:

• Amyloidosis is the leading cause of renal failure in Behçet's disease.
• Early diagnosis of renal involvement in BD requires regular urine analysis and serum creatinine/BUN monitoring.
• Vascular access complications are frequent, and BD activity may diminish post-hemodialysis initiation.