A controlled study of sacroiliitis in Behçet's disease

Radiographs of the sacroiliac joints of 34 patients with Behçet's disease were read blind by a senior radiologist. They were compared with those from 25 controls, 14 of whom were healthy. The remainder (11) had other rheumatological disorders including six who had AS. One patient with Behçet's disease had radiologically proven sacroiliitis only but her history was atypical and she was B27 positive. All patients with AS had definite sacroiliitis. Five out of 34 patients with Behçet's disease and four of 25 controls (three healthy, one with SLE) had equivocal sacroiliitis. Whilst appreciating that the numbers in this study are not large, we find no evidence of an increased prevalence of sacroiliitis in Behçet's disease.