Overview

Behcet's disease is a chronic relapsing inflammatory disease of unknown etiology involving multiple organs. Along with blindness, other bodily functions are greatly affected by this disease; conditions of the vascular, intestinal and central nervous systems are usually life threatening and require aggressive therapy. Recently, significant progress has been made in several areas of this disease. The introduction of biological agents (such as anti-TNF) have had a positive impact on the effectiveness of treatments. However, there are still a number of unmet needs in various fields of this disease. Despite this, there remains a number of unaddressed issues concerning the treatments of this disease. Several genes have been shown to be associated with this disease, in addition to HLA-B51. Abnormalities in several subsets of T helper cells have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Behcet's disease. Recent advances in the field of innate immunity have shed light on the new aspects of Behcet's disease; that is, this disease has both autoimmunity and autoinflammatory aspects. On the other hand, there are still controversies as to the diagnosis and treatment of recalcitrant manifestations of the disease. This publication highlights the most recent understanding of Behcet's disease and raises several unanswered questions in both basic to clinical treatment of this ailment. The contents of this book are primarily based on the most up-to-date results of research programs sponsored by the Japanese government as well as findings from Korean researchers. In particular, novel classification for neurological involvement (which has been discovered in Japan) led to the establishment of diagnostic criteria and treatment recommendation. Thus, this publication brings forth useful information for a variety of specialists who are involved in the management of this intractable disease.

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9781634828932

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Shunsei Hirohata is Professor of Internal Medicine at Kitasato University School of Medicine, Sagamihara, Japan, where he is also Chairman of the Department of Rheumatology and Infectious Diseases. He received his medical degree in 1980 at The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 1980, and also qualified in Rheumatology in Department of Medicine and Physical Therapy, The University of Tokyo. After finishing his thesis (equivalent to PhD), he carried out his postdoctoral fellowship of Rheumatology in the Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas between 1986 and 1988. He was appointed to assistant professor in The University Tokyo School of Medicine in 1989, to associated professor in Teikyo University School of Medicine in 1992, and to professor and chairman in the Department of Rheumatology and Infectious Diseases, Kitasato University School of Medicine in 2006. His major research interests include clinical and basic aspects of Behcets disease, the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric SLE, and the role of bone marrow in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis with more than 170 original peer-reviewed publications in English language.

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