Mucosal healing in intestinal Behçet's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by recurrent oral aphthous ulcers, intestinal lesions, genital ulcers, uveitis, and skin lesions. Evidence regarding mucosal healing for the prognosis of intestinal BD is scarce. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to determine the association between mucosal healing and long-term outcomes of patients with intestinal BD.

Relevant studies were identified in a comprehensive search of PubMed, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE databases. Studies reporting long-term outcomes of mucosal healing in patients with intestinal BD were included. Pooled risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for disease recurrence and surgery were calculated using the Mantel-Haenszel random-effects models. Heterogeneity among the eligible studies was evaluated using the Q test and I² statistics.

Of the 4785 studies initially identified, 8 were finally included. The pooled RR for the association between mucosal healing and disease recurrence was 0.41 (95% CI 0.30-0.57, P < 0.001). For the association between mucosal healing and the risk of surgery, the pooled RR was 0.33 (95% CI 0.17-0.63, P < 0.001). Confounding factors were adjusted in one study, whereas other studies only reported a crude association between mucosal healing and long-term outcomes without adjustment.

Mucosal healing is associated with a decreased risk of recurrence and surgery in intestinal BD. However, more studies are required given a small number of currently eligible studies and insufficient adjustment for confounding factors.