Abstract
To compare retinal and choroidal thickness in patients with Behçet's disease with and without ocular involvement as well as to evaluate the correlation between erythrocyte sedimentation rate and choroidal thickness among patients with Behçet's disease. This was a prospective interventional study investigating erythrocyte sedimentation as well as choroidal and retinal thickness among patients with Behçet's disease. Patients who were diagnosed based on The International Criteria for Behçet's Disease with (Group A) or without (Group B) ocular involvement and a matched control group (Group C) participated in the study. Optical coherence tomography measurements and blood tests were performed on the same day. Retinal and choroidal thickness were measured using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (Spectralis, Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany), and central macular thickness, central subfoveal choroidal thickness, and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness were measured using optical coherence tomography. Average erythrocyte sedimenta-tion values were 9.89 mm/h in Group A, 16.21 mm/h in Group B, and 3.89 mm/h in Group C; average central subfoveal choroidal thickness values were 350.66, 331.74, and 325.95 mm, respectively. Average central macular thickness and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness values of patients in Groups A, B and C were 226.39 and 225.97mm; 234.11 and 92.00 mm; and 97.58 and 99.84 mm, respectively. No significant difference was seen between Group A and B patients in central subfoveal choroidal thickness, central macular thickness, or retinal nerve fiber layer thickness values. Central macular thickness was statistically significantly thinner in Groups A and B than in Group C (p=0.016). Group A had thinning in the nasal quadrant of the retinal and general retinal nerve fiber layers when compared with those in Group C (p=0.010 and 0.041, respectively). A connection could not be established between the erythrocyte sedimentation, central subfoveal cho-roidal thickness, central macular thickness, and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in the patients with Behçet's disease. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate is typically used to test for activation of Behçet's disease and assess treatment response. In our study, we could not establish a connection between the erythrocyte sedimentation rate and central subfoveal choroidal thickness, central macular thickness, and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in patients with systematically active Behçet's disease without ocular involvement.
Highlights
Behçet’s disease (BD) is a multisystemic chronic vas culitis characterized by recurrent skin lesions, oral and genital aphthous ulcerations, arthritis, and uveitis[1]
The choroidea is a vascular layer with important functions, including oxygenation of the inner nuclear layers and the retinal pigment epithelium[12]
No statistically significant differen ce was observed in central macular thickness (CMT) and central subfoveal choroidal thickness (CSCT) between Groups A and B
Summary
Behçet’s disease (BD) is a multisystemic chronic vas culitis characterized by recurrent skin lesions, oral and genital aphthous ulcerations, arthritis, and uveitis[1]. 70% of all patients with BD have ocular involvement. The most common form of ocular involvement is non-gra nulomatous anterior uveitis (AU). Other ocular findings in patients with BD include keratitis, iridocyclitis, episcle ritis, scleritis, vitritis, vitreous hemorrhage, optic neuritis, retinal neovascularization, and chorioretinal scars[3,4]. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is defined as the speed at which erythrocytes fall in an hour. Factors augmenting fibrinogen and acute phase reactants play a role in increasingthe ESR. The ESR is a sensitive test used to diagnose the disease, track activation, and monitor treatment response[6]
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