Behcet's Syndrome

The association of aphthous lesions in the mouth, ulcerations on the genitalia, and iridocyclitis with hypopyon is best known as Behcet's syndrome. Although other authors 1-5 had published descriptions of the disease years before his original report, Behcet was among the first to recognize the relationship of ocular symptoms to mucocutaneous lesions. 6 The year after Behcet's paper appeared, Weekers and Reginster 7,8 reported additional cases and recognized the complex as an independent entity. The most important characteristic of this syndrome, which usually affects persons in the second or third decade of life, is recurrence. 9 There are repeated attacks of cutaneous or mucous membrane lesions, which appear suddenly, last several weeks to months, and regress spontaneously. Usually the ocular lesions appear after the other manifestations of the disease 10 and represent one of its most serious aspects. 11,12 It has been suggested 13,14 that this syndrome may be diagnosed in