Behcet's disease

Find symptom details, available treatments and diagnosis. Behcet's is a condition in which the body's immune system which normally protects the body against infections, becomes over-active. Behcets disease causes inflammation of different parts of the body. These may flare up without warning and can occur wherever there is a blood supply. Small blood vessels are particularly affected, and inflammation can appear in patches in areas where there are clusters of small blood vessels. Where this occurs in the body dictates the symptoms a person experiences. Behcet's disease generally begins when a person is in their 20s or 30s. Behcet's disease is more common in Mediterranean countries, Turkey, the Middle East, Japan and South-East Asia.

Although Behçet’s disease is incurable at present, incurable does not mean untreatable. There are several ways in which the immune system can be suppressed to an appropriate level to reduce the extra inflammation, and this suppresses the symptoms.