Skin Disease in Pregnancy
March 2015
in “
Best Practice & Research in Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology
”
Studysummary This review discusses physiological skin changes and specific dermatoses in pregnancy but reports no new clinical results, emphasizing careful diagnosis and management due to potential fetal risks in rare cases. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.
The document reviews skin conditions that can occur during pregnancy, including physiological changes and specific dermatoses like polymorphic eruption of pregnancy (PEP), atopic eczema of pregnancy (AEP), and pemphigoid gestationis (PG). It highlights the importance of accurate diagnosis and treatment, noting that PEP has an incidence between 0.06% and 0.5%, AEP is the most common dermatosis beginning in the first or second trimester, and PG is an autoimmune condition affecting 1 in 7000 pregnancies. Treatments often involve steroids and ultraviolet B phototherapy for AEP, with a focus on the safety of these treatments during pregnancy. The conditions typically do not affect pregnancy outcomes but may recur in future pregnancies.
