Successful treatment with stent angioplasty for Budd-Chiari syndrome in Behçet's disease

Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS) is a very rare vascular complication of Behçet's disease (BD) which often leads to death as a result of portal hypertension and liver failure. We report a 45-year-old BD patient who presented with BCS. Diagnosis was confirmed with CT scan and contrast-enhanced MR angiography which showed ascites, short-segment stenosis of the inferior vena cava (IVC), and middle and left hepatic venous thrombosis. Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) of the obstructed segment in the IVC was performed and resulted in dramatic reduction of portal venous pressure. Our experience indicates that PTA may be a safe and effective therapeutic modality for BCS in BD which is caused by short segmental obstruction of the IVC.