Impetigo Herpetiformis Pictures

       Impetigo is a harmless skin disease. Annoying, true, but basically unimportant. That is the rule. The exception from that rule is terrifying. Impetigo herpetiformis is a nasty skin condition, derived from impetigo, but with so much more reach than its ancestor. Fortunately, impetigo herpetiformis is, literally, one of the rarest diseases out there. With less than a hundred known victims, one could call impetigo herpetiformis a misfortune, a freak of nature, but not really a problem.

       In all actuality, you should be scared of it. Impetigo herpetiformis attacks pregnant women, usually killing their unborn children. So, you see, while it cannot cause severe damage to a fully grown woman, with a perfectly functional immune system, it has no such qualms about killing the fetus. Unfortunately, if the disease is not identified in its early stages, there is nothing to be done. It is easy to mistake the outside signs of impetigo herpetiformis for anything else, so the initial diagnosis is made by comparing the patients' lesions with some impetigo herpetiformis pictures. Once a potential diagnosis is established, a microbiological test is performed and the final judgment is given. If, indeed, the pregnant woman suffers from impetigo herpetiformis, drastic and immediate measures should be taken.

Impetigo herpetiformis pictures

       If you find yourself wondering what does impetigo herpetiformis look like, the answer is in the attached pictures. Medical specialists thought that this skin disease is related to psoriasis, but the women affected by the illness have never had encounters with psoriasis. There is no consensus in the medical world about the origin or the cause - effect rapport between pregnancy and impetigo herpetiformis. Physicians simply do not know enough about this disease to be certain. The reason why it is so scary is because it cannot be predicted, tested for or prevented. Thus, it takes everyone, patient and medical doctors, by surprise.

       Here are some facts about impetigo herpetiformis, which you should not ignore, but not really look for, either. Remember that less than a hundred women have suffered from it and that, if diagnosed properly and in its due time, it is very curable and without lasting effects on the body of the mother or the fetus.

       The first thing you should keep in mind is that impetigo herpetiformis does not paint a pretty image. It appears in the last trimester of pregnancy, looking like an ordinary rash. On first - time mothers, the suspect rash disappears shortly after delivering the baby. Unfortunately, it comes right back when the woman is pregnant again. This time, however, it evolves. Pus - filled sacks appear on a red area of skin, on the inside of the thighs or the groin. These bumps soon join and spread to the upper body or the lower extremities. They do not attack the face, the hands or the feet. Unfortunately, the pustules can make an appearance in the mouth and under the nails.

       One very curious piece of information about the pus - filled sacks is that the liquid does not contain bacteria, thus it is not infected. However, it can become bacteria - full once the disease progresses.

       The second thing that a woman should know about impetigo herpetiformis is that its associated symptoms are much worse than the skin problem in itself. These symptoms are the ones that ravage a woman's body and, generally, make it too weak to conserve the pregnancy. The symptoms are the following: fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fatigue. In some cases, the woman could experience low levels of calcium and phosphate in the blood.

Impetigo herpetiformis diagnosis and treatment

       Impetigo herpetiformis pictures are used in the early stages of the clinical diagnosis of this particular skin disease. However, once the assumption has been made, it is confirmed by a skin biopsy (so as to rule out other pregnancy related skin conditions) and by a microbiological test, which should indicate the type of bacteria that caused it.

       Once there is a certain diagnosis, the treatment of impetigo herpetiformis is comprised. Thus, it can be cured with oral steroids, like prednisone. The first dose is rather high (a shock dose), so as to stop the symptoms. Antibiotics are not recommended, unless the pustules become infected. The blood levels of calcium, phosphate and albumin must be constantly monitored during the treatment.

       What makes this skin condition deadly to the fetus remains a mystery, so far. Speculations have been made, tying the physical health of the mother to the health of the child, but nothing conclusive has come out of them. However, it is true that women who suffer from impetigo herpetiformis have a higher risk of placental insufficiency and stillbirth.