Optical coherence tomography findings in patients with Behçet'sdisease without eye involvement

Disease Without Eye Involvement Behçet's Disease (BD), is a chronic and multisystemic vasculitis that has periods of inflammation and remission and, is identified by Prof.Dr. Hulusi Behçet in 1937 with the triad of oral aphthae, genital ulcer and uveitis. Altough the disease is most often seen amongst middle aged individuals, entire group of age can be affected. Typical ocular involvement is panuveitis with hypopyon and retinal vasculitis. In our study we aimed to detect the variations of peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL), macular retinal nerve fiber layer (mRNFL), macular ganglion cell layer (mGCL), macular inner plexiform layer (mIPL), central macular thickness (CMT) and coroidal thickness (CT) by using automatic segmentation (AS) with optical coherent tomography (OCT); and consequently reveal the unseeable retinal involvement of the disease. In this study, 106 eyes of 53 patients (age range; 19-57 years) that had Behçet's disease but no eye involvement and 108 eyes of healthy 54 individuals of similar group of age –both referred to policlinics of Uludağ University Medical Faculty Department of Eye Diseases for ophthalmological examination between March 2017-March 2019- were compared in terms of pRNFL, mRNFL, mGCL, mIPL, CMT and CT by using OCT. In addition, the datas of Behçet patients were compared in itselves in terms of using only colchicine-other drugs additional to colchicine. When measurements of pRNFL of patient group and control group were compared, pRNFL measurement of superior nasal quadrant was found to be thinner in patient group and this difference is statistically significant (p=0.003). When macular RNFL measurements were compared, the thickness of mRNFL in internal superior, external superior and external inferior quadrant and mean volume were found to be statistically significantly thinned in patient group than control group (p=0,001, p=0,032, p=0,015, p=0,006). When GCL measurements were compared, the thickness of GCL in internal nasal, external nasal, internal superior, internal temporal, external temporal and vi internal inferior quadrant and mean volume were found to be statistically significantly thinned in patient group than control group (p=0,004, p=0,003, p=0,019, p=0,001, p=0,016, p=0,014, p=0,010). Macular IPL were statistically significanlty thinned in internal nasal, internal superior and internal inferior quadrant in patient group (p=0,010, p=0,026, p=0,011). There was no significant different in terms of mean CMT. When compared in terms of choroidal thickness, subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT), nasal choroidal thickness (NCT) and temporal choroidal thickness (TCT) were not significantly different between the groups. In Behçet's Disease, even if not any ocular involvement, we think we may be able to detect the variations of retina by using OCT. For this reason, utilizing OCT for the diagnosis and follow-up of these patients has an increasing importance.