Objectives: To determine the preferred treatment for patients with Behçet's syndrome.
Methods: A questionnaire was given to all participants of the 2010 meeting of the International Society for Behçet's Disease.
Results: Forty-one respondents from 6 different subspecialties. In the case of a patient with (severe) posterior uveitis or parenchymal central nervous system (CNS) disease no consensus was seen. A diffuse spectrum of different schedules were given. In both uveitis and CNS disease the majority of respondents preferred treatment options consisting of combination systemic therapy and systemic corticosteroids. TNF was preferred as first line drug in uveitis in 7.5% and in severe uveitis in 32.5% of respondents. In parenchymal CNS disease TNF blockage was given by 17% of the respondents. EULAR guidelines regarding uveitis were followed by 12/40 physicians. In patients with a new deep vein thrombosis, 90% of respondents would intensify immunosuppression. More than half would also anticoagulate.
Conclusions: Although consensus about how to treat patients with Behçet syndrome in different clinical situations is far from present, treatment has become more intensive when compared to 10-20 years ago. More uniformity should be sought for in the decision process in individual patients with Behçet's syndrome, regarding their treatment, as well as adhering to evidence, as presented in the EULAR guidelines, when present.