Behcet's Disease... What is the Real Anesthetic Cost?

Anesthetic Management Issues for Patients with Behcet's Disease

-Puncture of skin or mucous membrane is very likely to result in inflammation and nodular formation and should be kept to a minimum.

-Regional anesthesia would be less ideal but not contraindicated (Lesions from needle used for regional anesthesia)

-Awake fiberoptic intubation would be required with topical local anesthetics to airway rather than airway blocks.

-Use of an LMA could aggravate lesions in the airway.

-If spinal cord lesions are symptomatic, use of succinylcholine can result in hyperkalemia.

-With cervical cord lesions, intraoperative autonomic hyperreflexia may occur.

-Consider stress-dose corticosteroids with chronic steroid use.

-Behcet Disease may adversly affect pregnancy; the miscarriage, the pregnancy complications and C/section rates were significantly elevated.