Background: Behcet's disease was first described in 1937 as a trisympt
om complex. No standard therapy has been established. Tts cause is pre
sumed to be viral or immunologic. Objective: We sought to determine wh
ether patients with Behcet's disease benefit from interferon, which ha
s antiviral, immunomodulatory, antiproliferative, and antitumoral prop
erties. Methods: Fourteen patients were initially given 3 MU interfero
n alfa-2a subcutaneously three times per week. The doses were graduall
y increased to 12 MU. Each patient received a total dose of 216 MU dur
ing the 2-month study. Therapy with 9 MU interferon alfa-2a once a mon
th was continued in half the patients. Ah patients were observed befor
e and after treatment for 6-month periods, and all symptoms were recor
ded. Results: All patients were symptom free by the end of the 2-month
treatment period. The frequencies of oral and genital ulcers as well
as pustular vasculitis decreased significantly in the posttreatment pe
riod as compared with the pretreatment period. Conclusion: The data su
ggest that interferon treatment appears to be effective for patients w
ith Behcet's disease.