Spec. MD. Seda Kutluğ Ağaçkıran

Education and Specialisation

• 2006–2012  Yeditepe University Faculty of Medicine (English), Istanbul, Turkey – Medical Education
• 2013–2017  Marmara University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey – Specialisation in Internal Medicine
• 2018–2023  Marmara University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Istanbul, Turkey – Subspecialty Training in Rheumatology

Experience

• 2017–2018  Cide State Hospital, Kastamonu, Turkey – Specialist in Internal Medicine
• 2018  Süreyyapaşa Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey – Specialist in Internal Medicine
• 2023–August 2025  Prof. Dr. İlhan Varank Sancaktepe Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey – Rheumatologist

International Experience

• 2025–2026  SLEuro Training Bursary Programme – Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, University Hospital of Heraklion and University of Crete Medical School, Crete, Greece

Courses and Certificates

• M.Ü. Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee Training Programme for Researchers on the Use of Laboratory Animals
• EULAR Basic Ultrasonography Course
• EULAR Intermediate Ultrasonography Course
• EULAR Advanced Ultrasonography Course
• Basic Good Clinical Practice Training
• SMART Sacroiliac Joint MRI Imaging Course

Professional Memberships

• 1. Turkish Medical Association
• 2. Turkish Society of Rheumatology
• 3. SLEuro

Awards

• 2025–2026 SLEuro Training Bursary Programme – Bursary recipient; host institution: University Hospital of Heraklion and University of Crete Medical School, Greece

Articles published in international peer-reviewed journals

A1. Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Kardeş E, Ağaçkıran A, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Öner F. Common femoral vein wall thickness as a supportive imaging marker in the differential diagnosis of Behçet’s uveitis. Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences. 2026;56(3):761–768. doi:10.55730/1300-0144.6209.

A2. Karakök Ö, Kutluğ-Ağaçkıran S, Ergelen R, Ergun T, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Öner F. Prospective follow-up of patients with probable Behçet’s disease: first results of an inception cohort. Modern Rheumatology. 2026;36(4):641–647. doi:10.1093/mr/roaf123.

A3. Bozkurt T, Yildiz M, Deniz R, Yazici A, Karabacak M, Karatas H, Kutluğ-Ağaçkıran S, Gunalp A, Konte EK, Şahin S, Koker O, Barut K, Bes C, Cefle A, Ergun T, Direskeneli H, Kasapçopur Ö, Alibaz -Oner F. Clinical course of paediatric-onset Behçet’s disease in young adulthood. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2025;64(5):2876–2881. doi:10.1093/rheumatology/keae624.

A4. Abacar K, Çolakoğlu-Özkaya Ş, Ergun T, Aliyeva A, Kutluğ-Ağaçkıran S, Sevik G, Küçükoğlu-Cesur S, Soy M, Atagündüz P. Sjögren’s syndrome is rare in psoriasis but common in psoriatic arthritis: two sides of a coin – a single-centre retrospective study. Mediterranean Journal of Rheumatology. 2025;36(3):403–409. doi:10.31138/mjr.270224.tcs.

A5. Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Sünbül M, Doğan Z, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Oner F. Increased inferior vena cava wall thickness as a sign of extensive venous inflammation in Behçet’s Disease. Clinical Rheumatology. 2024;43(4):1355–1362. doi:10.1007/s10067-024-06911-w.

A6. Ergelen R, Ağaçkıran SK, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Oner F. Measurement of common femoral vein wall thickness by Doppler ultrasonography is an accurate diagnostic test for Behçet’s disease in both the supine and standing positions. Phlebology. 2024;39(6):388–392. doi:10.1177/02683555241235436.

A7. Alibaz-Oner F, Ergelen R, Kutluğ-Ağaçkıran S, Temiz F, Ergun T, Direskeneli H. Measurement of common femoral vein wall thickness as a diagnostic test in suspected Behçet’s disease. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2024;63(3):e86–e87. doi:10.1093/rheumatology/kead476.

A8. Sevik G, Ergelen R, Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Oner F. Intima-media thickness of the common femoral vein is increased in Behçet’s disease. Clinical Immunology. 2023;250:109306. doi:10.1016/j.clim.2023.109306.

A9. Bozkurt T, Karabacak M, Karatas H, Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Ergun T, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Oner F. Earlier and more aggressive treatment with biologics may prevent relapses and further new organ involvement in Behçet’s disease. Clinical Immunology. 2023;248:109263. doi:10.1016/j.clim.2023.109263.

A10. Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Sünbül M, Doğan Z, Kocakaya D, Kayacı S, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Oner F. Increased pulmonary arterial wall thickness in Behçet’s disease patients with major organ involvement: Is it a sign of severity? Rheumatology (Oxford). 2023;62(3):1238–1242. doi:10.1093/rheumatology/keac452.

A11. Ergenç İ, Kani HT, Karabacak M, Cömert Özer E, Mehdiyev S, Jafarov F, Abacar KY, Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Sevik G, Aslan R, Alibaz Öner F, İnanç N, Atagündüz MP, Seçkin D, Özen Alahdab Y, Ergun T, Direskeneli H, Atuğ Ö. RE: Risk of HBV Reactivation in HBsAg-Negative and Anti-HBc IgG-Positive Patients Receiving Biologic Therapy. Turkish Journal of Gastroenterology. 2023;34(3):310. doi:10.5152/tjg.2023.237002.

A12. Sevik G, Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Abacar KY, Aliyeva A, Direskeneli H, Alibaz-Öner F. The course and outcomes of COVID-19 in patients with Takayasu arteritis: a case series of 15 patients from a tertiary single centre. Rheumatology Quarterly. 2023;1(1):14–19. doi:10.4274/qrheumatol.galenos.2022.43534.

A13. Sunbul M, Midi IG, Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Engin E, Ucem S, Alibaz-Öner F, Sayar N, Direskeneli H, Özben Sadic B. Myocardial involvement in Behçet’s disease may be higher in patients with Neuro-Behçet’s disease: a speckle tracking echocardiographic study. Acta Cardiologica. 2022;77(6):515–523. doi:10.1080/00015385.2021.1965354.

Book Chapter

B1. Kutluğ Ağaçkıran S, Alibaz Öner F. Gastrointestinal Involvement in Behçet’s Disease. In: Can M, ed. Gastrointestinal Involvement in Rheumatic Diseases. 1st ed. Ankara: Türkiye Klinikleri; 2024. pp. 27–32.