Epidemiology and treatment of Behçet’s disease in the USA: insights from the Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness (RISE) Registry with a comparison with other published cohorts from endemic regions

Abstract

Background Behçet’s disease (BD), a chronic systemic vasculitis, has distinct geographical and ethnic variation. Data regarding the epidemiology of patients with BD in the U.S. are limited; therefore, we sought to describe BD patient characteristics and medication use in the U.S., and compared them with data from patients from endemic regions. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the RISE registry (2014–2018). Patients aged ≥ 18 years with BD were included. Sociodemographic and treatment information was extracted. We compared patients from the RISE registry to data from other published studies of patients with BD from endemic areas. Results One thousand three hundred twenty-three subjects with BD from the RISE registry were included. Mean age was 48.7 ± 16.3 years, female to male ratio was 3.8:1, and 66.7% were White. The most frequently used medications included glucocorticoids (67.6%) and colchicine (55.0%). Infliximab and adalimumab were the most used biologics (14.5% and 14.1%, respectively); 3.2% of patients used apremilast. The RISE registry had more women (79.3%), and patients were older compared to previously published BD studies from endemic areas. Methotrexate and TNFi were more commonly reported in RISE (21.8% and 29.4%) compared to studies from Egypt and Turkey. Colchicine, cyclosporine, and cyclophosphamide were more commonly used in cohorts from Egypt, Turkey, and Iran. Conclusions Findings from the largest BD dataset in the U.S. suggest that BD patients are predominantly female. Further research is needed to explore the reasons for the higher prevalence of BD among women in the U.S. and its possible impact on disease severity and management.