Clinicodemographic Data of Patients with Behçet's Disease: Data from a Tertiary Center in Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Introduction: Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic inflammatory vasculitis involving the arteries and veins. This study was driven by the rarity, chronic multisystemic nature, and heterogeneous spectrum of clinical features and geographical distribution. This study aimed to analyze the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with BD at the King Abdulaziz University Hospital and identify the association between clinical and laboratory findings and disease severity.

Methods: The study was a retrospective core chart review. This study included adult patients who visited the rheumatology clinic of King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Saudi Arabia between 2005 and 2023. The inclusion criteria were age ≥18 years and a diagnosis of Behçet's disease (BD) based on either the International Criteria for Behçet's Disease or the International Study Group classification criteria.

Results: In total, 81 patients with BD with almost equal male (51.9%) and female (48.1%) distribution, 75.3% Saudi nationals, mean onset age of 38.48 years, and mean body mass index of 27.57 kg/m2 were identified. The most common clinical manifestations were oral ulcerations (56.8%), genital ulcerations (37%), uveitis (24.7%), arthritis (22.2%), skin lesions (13.6%), and deep vein thrombosis (9.88%). Significant differences in high-density lipoprotein, hemoglobin, Creactive protein, and albumin levels were associated with the age, sex, and nationality of the patients, respectively. Similarly, body mass index was significantly associated with C-reactive protein (p = 0.004), alanine aminotransferase (p = 0.023), aspartate aminotransferase (p = 0.003), and gamma-glutamyl aminotransferase (p = 0.034) levels.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated that there are significant associations between demographic factors, laboratory parameters, and BD activity.