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

Objective Behcet'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. Methods 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 Der Simonian and Laird. Results 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). Conclusion 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.