Behçet's disease and vitiligo in two brothers: coincidence or association?

Behçet's disease (BD) and vitiligo are disorders with unknown aetiology. We report on two brothers with ocular Behcet's disease who had advanced unilateral ophthalmic symptoms associated with vitiligo. The two brothers had recurrent oral and genital ulceration, uveitis and white patches on their skin. The most probable hypothesis for the aetiology of BD is that of an autoimmune reaction in genetically predisposed individuals, with vasculitis as the main pathological hallmark. Despite many years of research, the specific causes of vitiligo remain obscure, and the most advanced aetiological hypothesis remains that of autoimmunity. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case within the literature of BD associated with vitiligo. The existence of the two different disorders is noteworthy as they were observed in two brothers during the same period in their lives, with very similar clinical observations.