BACKGROUND: Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic inflammatory disease involving many systemic lesions characterized by vasculitis as a common basic pathologic process. Mucocutaneous (MC) features are considered as the diagnostic hallmarks. AIM: To retrospectively determine the epidemiological and clinical aspects of BD mucocutaneous symptoms in Tunisia compared to those found in the literature. METHODS: Twenty-eight patients were involved in a single-center dermatological recruitment for a 27-year period (1980-2007) on the basis of international BD criteria. RESULTS: Our series included 19 males and 9 females. The mean age at onset was 28 years and the mean age at diagnosis was 37.9 years. The frequency of MC manifestations was as follows: oral ulcers (100%), genital ulcers (92.8%), other cutaneous signs (82.1%) such as papulopustular lesions (53.5%), and dermohypodermal nodes (11.53%), aphthous cutaneous ulcers (17.8%), and other lesions (leg ulcer: three cases, erythema multiform: one case, and infected pyodermatitis: one case). Systemic manifestations were present in 18 patients. CONCLUSIONS: MC manifestations are hallmarks of the disease and usually the onset symptoms. The frequencies of the various MC signs seen in our study broadly match those found in the literature.
BACKGROUND: Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic inflammatory disease involving many systemic lesions characterized by vasculitis as a common basic pathologic process. Mucocutaneous (MC) features are considered as the diagnostic hallmarks. AIM: To retrospectively determine the epidemiological and clinical aspects of BD mucocutaneous symptoms in Tunisia compared to those found in the literature. METHODS: Twenty-eight patients were involved in a single-center dermatological recruitment for a 27-year period (1980-2007) on the basis of international BD criteria. RESULTS: Our series included 19 males and 9 females. The mean age at onset was 28 years and the mean age at diagnosis was 37.9 years. The frequency of MC manifestations was as follows: oral ulcers (100%), genital ulcers (92.8%), other cutaneous signs (82.1%) such as papulopustular lesions (53.5%), and dermohypodermal nodes (11.53%), aphthous cutaneous ulcers (17.8%), and other lesions (leg ulcer: three cases, erythema multiform: one case, and infected pyodermatitis: one case). Systemic manifestations were present in 18 patients. CONCLUSIONS:MC manifestations are hallmarks of the disease and usually the onset symptoms. The frequencies of the various MC signs seen in our study broadly match those found in the literature.