J Korean Ophthalmol Soc.  2002 Jan;43(1):67-74.

Behcet's Disease in Korean

• Park JW
• Koh HJ
• Kim HB

Abstract

PURPOSE: Behcet's disease is a chronic, recurrent, multisystemic disorder, which visual prognosis is poor. The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of Behcet's disease in Korean were evaluated.
METHODS
The clinical records on 3,175 patients with Behcet's disease diagnosed at Behcet's disease clinic in Severance Hospital between November 1983 and December 1999 were reviewed.
RESULTS
Among all 3,175 patients, the men/women ratio of Behcet's disease was 1:1.6. The age of disease onset was the highest in the thirties (33.8%). The most frequent major and minor symptom was oral ulcer (97.7%) and arthritis (32.8%) respectively, and the proportion of ocular symptom was 19.3%. The most frequent initial symptom was oral ulcer (77.4%). The ratio of men/women with ocular symptom was 1:0.98. The mean interval between the initial symptom and ocular symptom was 34 months, and the most common ocular symptom was iritis (79.0%). The most frequent systemic drug administered in patients with ocular involvement was colchicines (35%). Visual acuity was worsened in 56% of the eyes followed for over 24 months.
CONCLUSIONS
The authors notice the characteristics of Behcet's disease in Korean and suggest that the continuous and nationwide survey is further necessary.

Keyword

Behcet's disease; Clinical and epidemiological characteristics; Nationwide survey

MeSH Terms

Arthritis
Humans
Iritis
Oral Ulcer
Prognosis
Visual Acuity