With your permission, we use cookies to measure how this site is used. Nothing is measured unless you accept.
DISEASES · VASCULITIS
A long-term disease in which the body's blood vessels become inflamed. It most often begins with recurring mouth sores; Türkiye is among the countries where it is most common.
Common: recurring painful mouth sores (aphthae); genital sores; acne-like skin rashes and painful red nodules; joint pain and swelling.
Rarer but important: eye redness, pain or blurred vision; painful swelling in a leg (vein blockage); headache, balance or speech problems; abdominal pain, diarrhoea, blood in stool.
It usually begins between the ages of 20 and 40. Men and women are affected at similar rates, though it can run more severely in men. A family history slightly raises the risk, but the disease is not directly hereditary.
There is no single definitive test. Diagnosis rests on the pattern of symptoms and the physician's examination. Your physician evaluates your mouth and skin findings, may refer you to an eye specialist, may order blood tests, and can request vessel or brain imaging if needed. A pathergy test may be applied.
Treatment is planned person by person, according to which organs are involved — a patient with only mouth and skin findings is treated differently from one whose eyes or vessels are involved.
Drug groups that may be used include local treatments (mouth gels, rinses), colchicine, corticosteroids, immune-regulating drugs, and biologic drugs. Use your medication exactly as your physician prescribes — never start, change or stop it on your own.
Smoking can worsen mouth sores and vessel involvement; quitting matters. Take care of oral hygiene and avoid hard brushes and irritating foods. Regular, unforced exercise helps joint complaints. Do not skip eye check-ups — eye involvement may give no early warning. If you are planning a pregnancy, talk to your physician first; some medications need changing.
When is it urgent?
Go to a health facility without delay in these situations:
It is a long-term disease, but the frequency and severity of attacks can decrease over time. With regular follow-up and treatment most patients lead a normal life.
No. Behçet's disease is not contagious.
It is not directly hereditary. A family history slightly raises the risk, but most patients' children never develop the disease.
Türkiye Society for Rheumatology — Behçet's syndrome management recommendations.
EULAR — recommendations for the management of Behçet's syndrome.
This page is for information only.
The information here does not replace a physician's examination, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult a physician about your complaints; do not start, change or stop your medication without asking your doctor.
LAST UPDATED: 12 MARCH 2026CONTENT: ARD SCIENTIFIC BOARD
