Clinical characteristics and predictors for cardiovascular system involvement in patients with Behçet's disease

The purpose of this study is to analyse the clinical characteristics of Behçet's disease (BD) patients in China with or without cardiovascular system involvement, and to develop a risk model to identify factors related to cardiovascular involvement in BD.

This retrospective cohort study, using the information on BD in Shenzhen People's Hospital from January 2000 to December 2021, included 95 patients: BD patients without cardiovascular system involvement (n=63) and with cardiovascular system involvement (n=32).

Patients with BD who were males and had a combination of hypertension and a longer duration of disease were more likely to have cardiovascular involvement (p < 0.05). Compared to patients without cardiovascular involvement, manifestations of genital ulcers are rarely observed in those with cardiovascular involvement (60.32% vs. 37.50%, p=0.035). The binary logistic regression analysis found that ascending aortic widening and a history of hypertension were independent risk factors for BD with cardiovascular system involvement (OR=1.277, 95% CI 1.09, 1.495, p=0.002; OR=11.578, 95% CI 1.308, 102.639, p=0.028). The established prediction model indicated that can help to predict the likelihood of cardiovascular involvement in a patient with BD.

Cardiovascular involvement in BD is not at all rare, however, it is often underreported due to a lack of specificity. BD patients who are male, have a history of combined hypertension, and have a long duration of disease should be focused on the presence of combined cardiovascular system involvement, with particular attention to the patient's ascending aortic internal diameter.