De ziekte van Behcet

Three women aged 30, 38 and 34 years, originating from Morocco, the Dominican Republic and Turkey, had been suffering since several years from, among other things, oral aphthae, vaginal ulcers and skin lesions without specific abnormalities at examination of blood and biopsies. The diagnosis of Behcet's disease was made and immunomodulating treatment instituted, following which the patients improved. Behcet's disease is a chronic inflammatory multisystemic disorder of unknown aetiology. Originally it was characterised as a triad of recurrent oral aphthae, genital ulcers and inflammatory eye disease. Because symptoms manifest themselves over many years the disease can be missed or misdiagnosed easily. There is no laboratory test available to support the diagnosis, so that the diagnosis is based on clinical symptomatology. The incidence is increasing due to migration from areas with higher prevalence.