Reversibility of brain lesions in a case of Neuro-Behçet's disease studied by MR diffusion.
Behçet's disease is a multisystem disorder first described in 1937 as a triad of oral and genital ulcerations and uveitis. The etiology is unknown. Involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) occurs in 10-25% of patients. Neuro-Behçet's disease (NBD) can be classified as: (1) parenchymal, with a predilection for brainstem, basal ganglia and thalami involvement, subcortical white matter damage, spinal cord lesions, and meningoencephalitic presentations; (2) vascular, which usually affects major intracranial vessels with frequent involvement of the venous sinuses, cerebral veins and rarely intracranial arteries. Even if not constantly demonstrated in the CNS a vasculitic process involving small blood vessels, including venules, is regarded as an important pathological feature. We describe the case of a patient with NBD studied with conventional and diffusion weighted MR imaging.
Vuolo
Luisa
L
DINOG, Department of Neurosciences, Ophthalmology and Genetics, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy. luisa_vuolo@yahoo.it
Bonzano
Laura
L
Roccatagliata
Caterina
C
Parodi
Roberto Carlo
RC
Roccatagliata
Luca
L
D000328:Adult; D001528:Behcet Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D016896:Treatment Outcome