Ocular manifestations of Behcet's disease in Jordanian patients

Purpose: To study the prevalence, manifestations and severity of ocular involvement of Behcet's disease in Jordanian patients. Methods: The study population consisted of 43 patients diagnosed to have Behcet's disease through Rheumatologist's examinations conducted at Jordan University Hospital between January 2002 and July 2009. The sample involved patients who displayed ocular manifestations. This included 18 patients; 12 males and 6 females with a mean age of 35 years (SD = 17.26). Ophthalmological examinations and retrospective analysis of medical files were carried on. Results: Ocular manifestations were seen in 41.9% of patients. The most common manifestation for Behcet's disease was vitritis with a prevalence of 55.6%, followed by anterior uveitis and retinal vasculitis (50% for each). On the other hand, the most frequent complications involved were cataract, cystoid macular edema (CMO), posterior synechiae and glaucoma with a prevalence of (44.4%), (33.3%), (11.1%) and (5.6%), respectively. Conclusion: The prevalence and severity of ocular lesions in Behcet's disease is relatively low in Jordanian patients. This result indicates that early diagnoses and intervention might delay or even prevent vision loss for those patients.