Rupture of Renal Artery in a Patient with BehÃ§et's Disease

Sim, Woo Young; Lim, Tuk Woo; Kim, Kyung Dal; Sim, Woo Young

Abstract

The vascular involvement is seen in 8% to 24% of patients with BehÃ§et's syndrome. Arterial lesions are less frequently observed and the involvement of renal artery is very rare. Indeed, there is only one case report of ruptured renal aneurysm due to Behc et's disease. We report a case of renal artery rupture, which was likely caused by BehÃ§et's disease. Even though we cannot completely rule out the other causes of renal artery rupture with this patient, the rupture was likely due to vascular involvement of BehÃ§et's disease. Dermatologists always should consider the possibility of major vessel involvement when they treat patients with BehÃ§et's disease, even if the incidence is very low and the patient may not complain of any systemic symptoms. INTRODUCTION: BehÃ§et's disease was first defined by Hulusi BehÃ§et's in 1937 as a multisystemic disease with the triad of recurrent aphthous stomatitis, genital ulceration and relapsing iritis. Its etiology remains obscure. It is accepted that the pathologic process of BehÃ§et's disease is an immunologic vasculitis. Among vascilar lesions, the venous system is the major affected site. Arterial lesions, such as aneurysms or occlusions, are rarely reported, but sometimes adversely affects the course of the disease. Aneurysm formation is known to be life-threatening because of the risk of rupture.