Behçet disease: clinical spectrum and association with hepatitis B and C viruses.

We studied 48 patients with Behçet disease to determine the clinical spectrum of the disease. We also compared the seropositivity of patients for hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) infection with a healthy control group to determine whether there is an association. The major physical findings were oral aphthosis 93.8%, genital aphthosis 77.1% and ocular manifestations 64.6%. No patients were HCV antibody seropositive, but 3 of the control group (3.1%) tested seropositive. One patient (2.1%) and 2 in the control group (2.1%) tested positive for both HBV surface antigen and HBV core antibody. The differences were not statistically significant. There is, therefore, no case for recommending viral screening for HBV and HCV in Behçet disease patients at present.