Characteristic Echocardiographic Manifestations of Behçet's Disease

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Rheumatology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Behçet's disease is a multisystem inflammatory disorder.
• Cardiac involvement can occur in Behçet's disease, but characteristic echocardiographic findings require elucidation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and describe the typical echocardiographic features associated with cardiac involvement in Behçet's disease.
• To assess the prevalence of different echocardiographic manifestations in a cohort of Behçet's patients.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of echocardiographic data from 97 Behçet's disease patients.
• Inclusion criteria: Patients admitted between January 2002 and December 2016 with a diagnosis of Behçet's disease.
• Data collected included cardiac involvement details and specific echocardiographic findings.

Main Results:

• 63.9% of patients had cardiac involvement, predominantly in males (74.6%).
• Valvular lesions were most common (74.6%), particularly aortic regurgitation, with characteristic findings like cusp prolapse and annular lesions.
• Aortic lesions (30.0%) included dilation, aneurysm, and pseudoaneurysm formation.

Conclusions:

• Cardiac involvement, especially valvular disease like aortic regurgitation, is frequent in Behçet's disease, particularly in males.
• Characteristic echocardiographic findings, including specific valvular and aortic abnormalities, should prompt consideration of Behçet's disease diagnosis.
• Echocardiography plays a crucial role in diagnosing and characterizing cardiac manifestations in Behçet's disease.