Electroretinographic, Electrooculographic and Visually Evoked Response Findings in Adamantiadis-behçet’s Disease

Abstract

The authors study the electrophysiological finding in a series of 34 patients suffering from Adamantiadis-Behçet’s disease in various stages.

They draw attention to the early disturbances of the EOG in relation to the disturbances of the ERG and stress the diagnostic significance of the VER in cases where the disease appears in the clinical form of optic neuritis.

Adamantiadis-Behçet’s disease was first described by Adamantiadis in 1930. The etiology of this condition, which presents a multiplicity of clinical manifestations, is still unknown and should most probably be ascribed to an im-munological mechanism.

It is of interest that in Hippocrates’ Third Book on epidemics we find a description of disease which in many respects resembles Adamantiadis-Behçet’s condition.

The disease is of particular importance since it shows an almost endemic character in the Mediterranean countries and in Japan where 36.8% of uveitis cases are attributed to it (Bietti, 1966; Palimeris, 1973).

Clinically the disease is characterized by a variety of symptoms, such as ulcérations of the oral mucous membranes (98%) and of the external sexual organs (66%), arthritis (59%), hemorrhagic colitis of the rectum, various cutaneous manifestations (88%), thrombophlebitis (20%), symptoms from the central nervous system (20%), pericarditis, pancreatitis and chiefly affections of the eyes, such as iritis with hypopyon, Chorioiditis, bleedings from the eye fundus, periphlebitic changes, atrophy of the optic nerve and resultant secondary alterations, such as glaucoma, cataract, retinal detachment, etc.

The symptoms involving the eyes follow a chronic course with recurrences of the disease. The prognosis of the disease, especially of its Ophthalmologic aspects, is grave, since it very often leads to blindness. The disease mainly affects males, females being to a lesser extent subject to it.

The purpose of the present investigation is to provide an analysis of the ERG, EOG and VER findings in patients suffering from Adamantiadis-Behçet’s disease who have been followed up in the Athens University Eye Clinic since 1967.

Of the 34 patients who have been followed up repeatedly and at different stages of the disease, 26 were male and 8 female. Of the patients who present a multiplicity of symptoms 4 were blind and in 6 only one eye was involved.