Background: There is no definite treatment for Behçet’s disease. New drugs are being evaluated in cases unresponsive to conventional treatment modalities. Objective: In this study we investigated the efficacy of interteron alfa-2a on skin lesions in 18 Behçet’s disease patients who had predominantly mucocutaneous involvement. Methods: Eighteen patients with Behçet’s disease were treated with interferon alfa-2a at 3 million lU/day in the first week (three times a week), 6 million lU/day in the second week (three times a week), 9 million IU/day in the third week and thereafter (three times a week). Interferon alfa-2a was administered subcutaneously for a total of 12 weeks. Results: At the end of the treatment the efficacy of the drug was found to be good in 9 patients and very good in 7 patients. Interferon alfa-2a is particularly effective in skin manifestations such as genital ulceration and erythema-nodosum-like lesions. It was also found to be effective in systemic manifestations such as fever, diarrhea and eye involvement. Conclusion: Our results indicate that interferon alfa-2a is a promising drug in the treatment of Behçet’s disease.

Keywords:
Behçet’s disease, Interferon alfa-2a
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© 1996 S. Karger AG, Basel
1996
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