Behcet's disease in Bahrain : clinical and HLA findings

الملخص EN

Objective : To study the clinical features and the HLA findings of Behcet’s disease in Bahrain.

Method : A retrospective study of nine patients with Behcet’s disease from the Salmaniya Medical Complex who were treated over a 15-year period are analysed.

Results : The male to female ratio was 3.5:1.

Oral ulcers were present in all patients, genital ulcers in 88.9%, skin lesions in 66.7%, ocular involvement in 44.4 %, arthritis in 44.4 %, epididymitis in 57 % of the males, and DVT in 22.2 %.

HLA B5 was positive in 66.7 % of the patients.

Conclusion : 66.7 % of the cases had the HLA B5 allele.

Their clinical manifestations are similar to those reported in the other Gulf countries.