Neuro-Behcet's disease: a masquerader of multiple sclerosis. A prospective study of neurologic manifestations of Behcet's disease in 96 Iranian patients.

Behcet's disease is a multisystem vasculitis. Its neurologic complications include different syndromes. The purpose of this investigation was to study the prevalence of neurologic manifestations among patients with Behcet's disease and to determine the frequency of different symptoms, signs, and syndromes in neuro-Behcet's disease. Ninety-six consecutive patients who were referred to the Behcet's Disease Clinic in Shiraz (southern Iran) were interviewed and thoroughly examined. Psychiatric evaluation, CSF analysis, electroencephalography, electrodiagnostic studies, and neuroradiologic imaging (preferably MRI) were performed in appropriate cases. Six patients (6.3%) had definite neuro-Behcet's disease. They were 4 males and 2 females (mean age 37.5 years). In 2 patients Behcet's disease had not been diagnosed before. The most frequent symptoms of neuro-Behcet's disease were headache (83.3%), paresthesia (83.3%), unsteadiness (66.7%), diplopia (66.7%), and weakness (50%). The most frequent signs were gait abnormalities (66.7%), sensory abnormalities (66.7%), ophthalmoplegia (50%), cerebellar ataxia (50%), and hemiplegia (50%). The most common syndrome was brain-stem+ type (50%). Subacute onset and relapsing-remitting course were the most common temporal patterns. Neurological manifestation is a relatively less frequent complication of Behcet's disease but it produces severe disabilities. It must be considered in differential diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.