Many infectious diseases progress during pregnancy because of impaired cell-mediated immunity. Morgan et al identified a number of features of cutaneous leishmaniasis in pregnant women. The authors are from Cornell University, Hospital Universitario Prof Edgar Santos, Universidade Federal da Bahia, and the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerias in Brazil.
Features of individual skin lesions in a pregnant woman:
(1) tend to be 3-4 times larger than those seen in a nonpregnant woman
(2) often are exophytic and vegetative in nature rather than ulcerated
(3) may be disseminated (> 10 lesions)
Effects on the fetus: stillbirth and preterm delivery occur at an increased rate
Therapy is not usually attempted during pregnancy because of concern for fetal toxicity. If therapy is attempted the response may be poor.
Following delivery some women have spontaneous remission. The response to chemotherapy is often good, resulting in patient cure.
To read more or access our algorithms and calculators, please log in or register.
