Behcet's Disease (A Study of 23 Cases From Tripoli, Libya)

In a study of 23 cases of Behcet's disease, we found male prepondrance (males 82.6%, females 17.4%) with commonest age of onset between 21-30 years in 70% cases. During the course of the disease, recurrent oro- genital ulcers were noticed in all the cases, nodosum in 5 and thrombophlebi7tis in 4), eye .involvement' in 10, joint involvement in 6, .0pididmitis in 2 cases and deep vein thrombosis, CNS involvement and oesophaga ulcers in one case each were also seen. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate was raised between 35 and 120 mm during the active, phase of the disease. In 15 cases, treatment with oral predisolone controlled all the manifestations while treatment with colchicine, relieved oro-genital and skin lesions in 7 patients. One patient with eye involvement and recurrent oesophageal ulcers improved well with a combination of prednisolone and cyclophosphamide. Progressive deterioration of vision was noticed in 2 patients in spite of regular treatment.