[Neurologic Behçet disease]

Behçet's disease is very occasionally revealed by neurological abnormalities. This report describes such a case.

A 13 year-old girl was admitted because of status epilepticus and fever. Clinical examination showed horizontal nystagmus, cerebellar syndrome, right hemiplegia, ophthalmoplegia and meningitis. Her CSF contained 80 lymphocytes/mm3, 0.75 milligram proteins and 0.5 milligram glucose. CT scan showed a hypodense area in the internal capsule. Two similar episodes occurred 4 and 6 months later, but all attempts at determining the etiology were negative. A diagnosis of neurological Behçet's disease was considered 10 months after the first episode when the patient developed oral ulcers followed by pseudofolliculitis of the scalp. The disease recurred several times despite treatment with prednisone, colchicine and antiaggregant drugs.

Recurrent aseptic meningitis is a classic manifestation of neurological Behçet's disease. It usually appears 2 months to 27 years after the first extraneurological signs and not, as in this case, several months before.