Abstract
There is a strong relationship between celiac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis. It affects mostly young people, 20–40 years of age, of Northern European descent with a male predominance. One third of patients with dermatitis herpetiformis have symptoms of malabsorption, and more than 90 % have evidence of gluten-sensitive enteropathy on endoscopic biopsy.
Clinical signs and features include:
Primary lesions are round erythematous papules with overlying vesicles (papulovesicles)
Skin lesions often so pruritic that primary lesions are absent and replaced with excoriations and erosions
Lesions are clustered (herpetiform) but not caused by a herpes virus
Classic distribution is symmetrical and bilaterally on extensor surfaces (elbows, knees), scalp, buttocks, and nuchal area; rarely on face and groin
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bolotin D, Petronic-Rosic V. Dermatitis herpetiformis. Part I. Epidemiology, pathogenesis, and clinical presentation. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2011;64:1017–24.
Reunala T. Dermatitis herpetiformis: coeliac disease of the skin. Ann Med. 1998;30:416–8.
Bolotin D, Petronic-Rosic V. Dermatitis herpetiformis. Part II. Diagnosis, management, and prognosis. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2011;64:1027–33.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Zakko, L., Finch, J., Rothe, M.J., Grant-Kels, J.M. (2013). Dermatitis Herpetiformis. In: Wu, G., Selsky, N., Grant-Kels, J. (eds) Atlas of Dermatological Manifestations of Gastrointestinal Disease. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6191-3_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6191-3_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6190-6
Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6191-3
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)