Evaluation of erectile function in male patients with behçet's disease

Introduction: Behcet's disease (BD) is characterized by recurrent oral and genital aphthae, and any of several systemic manifestations, including ocular disease, skin lesions, arthritis, neurologic and vascular disease. The purpose of the present study is to compare male patients with the BD with healthy individuals in terms of the erectile function and sexual function. Material and method: For the purposes of this study, 72 sexually active male BD patients and 62 healthy controls were enrolled. Demographic and clinical characteristics including age, smoking, disase duration, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP) were recorded. Sexual function was assessed according to the international index of erectile function (IIEF) scoring system. Anxiety ve depression scores were evaluated with Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the widespread pain observed was graded with the help of the visual analogue scale. The disease related quality of life was measured with the help of the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) . Results: Patients with BD had significantly lower scores erectile function in comparison with the healthy control group (p<0.001). Patients age and disease duration were negatively correlated with the scores erectile function (p<0.001). The HADS-D, HADS-A, NHP Social isolation, NHP Emotional reactions and NHP Energy level scores were negatively correlated with the scores erectile function (p < 0.001). Conclusion: BD leads to an impairment in the erectile function in male patients, which is especially strongly associated with the age, disease duration, anxiety, depression and the quality of life. Keywords: Behcet's disease, erectile function, male, quality of life, psychological status.