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Mucocutaneous Lesions in the Behcet Syndrome
The Editors welcome submissions for possible publication in the Letters section. Authors of letters should:
•Include no more than 300 words of text, three authors, and five references
•Type with double-spacing
•Send three copies of the letter, an authors' form signed by all authors, and a cover letter describing any conflicts of interest related to the contents of the letter.
Letters commenting on an Annals article will be considered if they are received within 6 weeks of the time the article was published. Only some of the letters received can be published. Published letters are edited and may be shortened; tables and figures are included only selectively. Authors will be notified that the letter has been received. If the letter is selected for publication, the author will be notified about 3 weeks before the publication date. Unpublished letters cannot be returned.
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TO THE EDITOR:
We agree with Demiroglu and colleagues that no single treatment exists for a cure or a long-lasting remission in the Behcet's syndrome and that more work toward this end is clearly needed. We also have no doubt that penicillin, if shown to be as effective as thalidomide, would definitely be less risky.
In 1989, an uncontrolled study suggested that penicillin might be effective in treating the Behcet syndrome (Okten S. Penicillin in the treatment of Behcet's disease. Presented at the Fifth International Conference on Behcet's Disease, 14-15 September 1989, Rochester, Minnesota). Later, a retrospective study at the Seventh Mediterranean Congress of Rheumatology [1] and two randomized studies published in peer-reviewed journals [2, 3] reported favorable results with penicillin in the Behcet syndrome, but none of these studies was blinded. We believe that a properly blinded study is necessary before penicillin can be considered optimal for this condition.
Finally, we are not sure, as Demiroglu and colleagues seem to be, about the long-lasting effects of interferon-α. In a pilot study that used each patient as his or her own control [4], we had shown a beneficial effect of systemic interferon-α therapy especially in controlling the arthritis of the Behcet syndrome. However, symptoms recurred after this therapy was stopped.
Vedat Hamuryudan, MD
Cem Mat, MD
Hasan Yazici, MD
University of Istanbul; Istanbul, Turkey
The Editors welcome submissions for possible publication in the Letters section. Authors of letters should:
•Include no more than 300 words of text, three authors, and five references
•Type with double-spacing
•Send three copies of the letter, an authors' form signed by all authors, and a cover letter describing any conflicts of interest related to the contents of the letter.
Letters commenting on an Annals article will be considered if they are received within 6 weeks of the time the article was published. Only some of the letters received can be published. Published letters are edited and may be shortened; tables and figures are included only selectively. Authors will be notified that the letter has been received. If the letter is selected for publication, the author will be notified about 3 weeks before the publication date. Unpublished letters cannot be returned.
Annals welcomes electronically submitted letters.
- Copyright ©2004 by the American College of Physicians
