Demographic and clinical features of Behcet's disease in Azerbaijan

Behcet's disease (BD) is a multisystem inflammatory disease characterized by recurrent aphthous ulcers, genital ulcers and uveitis. Demographic and clinical features of BD are different in various countries. Due to these ethnic discrepancies, we decided to consider the clinical picture of BD in the Azeri population of Iran and compare it with other ethnic groups.

This cross-sectional cohort study was carried out at the Connective Tissue Diseases Research Center of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran from 2006 to 2013. We considered the demographic and clinical findings in 166 patients with BD. Disease activity was measured by the Iranian Behcet's Disease Dynamic Activity Measure (IBDDAM) and Total Inflammatory Activity Index (TIAI).

The male-to-female ratio was 1.7 : 1.0; the age of disease onset was 25.8 ± 8.9 years. Recurrent oral aphthous ulcers were the initial manifestations of BD in 83.1% of patients. Panophthalmitis and panuveitis were the most common ophthalmic manifestations of disease. Blindness occurred in 7.1% of patients. This study showed no difference between the two genders in mean age of disease onset and clinical manifestations. However, IBDDAM in men was higher than women. Retinal vasculitis in men was more common than women.

BD in the Azeri population of Iran starts in the third decade and has a male predominance. The activity of the disease and retinal vasculitis in men is more predominant than women in Azerbaijan.