Ischaemic heart disease in Behçet's syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Behçet's syndrome (BS) has been reported with cardiovascular involvement. It's still unclear that BS is associated with the increased risk of ischaemic heart disease (IHD). We aimed to conduct a meta-analysis concerning the incidence of IHD in BS and identify the relationship between IHD and BS. We performed a comprehensive literature search based on PubMed and Embase databases up to 7 July, 2021. Incidence of IHD was calculated by metaproportion. Pooled risk ratio and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using a random-effect, generic inverse variance method of DerSimonian and Laird. Four studies with 9237 patients with IHD in BS and 40353 controls were identified and included in our meta-analysis. The pooled risk ratio of IHD in patients with BS was 1.30 and achieved statistical significance (95% CI 1.04-1.64). The statistical heterogeneity was low with an I2 of 39% (p=0.18). In this meta-analysis the presence of BS was associated with an increased risk of IHD. Prospective researches should be done to determine the pathophysiological and prognostic implications of increased IHD in BS.