Neuro-Behcet's disease misdiagnosed and treated as multiple sclerosis: a deceiving masquerader.

Abstract

Behcet's disease is a chronic polysymptomatic systemic vasculitis disorder of unknown etiology characterized by several clinical manifestations in multiple organ systems. Involvement of the nervous system occurs in ∼9% of patients with Behcet's disease (ranging from 3 to 30%). Neuro-Behcet's disease is a great masquerader of multiple sclerosis. Diagnosing this disorder might be challenging, especially in a patient who does not fulfill the criteria of Behcet's disease while having a neurological presentation. We report a case of neuro-Behcet's disease who was misdiagnosed as having multiple sclerosis for many years and started on unnecessary disease-modifying therapy for multiple sclerosis. A thorough history, physical examination, and systematic investigations are mandatory to differentiate between these two conditions. Our case presentation raises awareness of the importance of differentiating between these two conditions since the consequences of misdiagnosis are catastrophic. The main challenges differentiating between multiple sclerosis and neuro-Behcet's are clinical and paraclinical, including neuroimaging.