A study links hidradenitis suppurativa to higher risks of pregnancy complications, as well as long-term health problems for mothers and their children.
- Verneuil disease is characterized by nodules and abscesses.
- According to a study, women who suffer from it have a greater risk of suffering from certain complications during their pregnancy: gestational diabetes (61%), hypertensive disorders (55%), death (38%), etc.
- Their child also has a 31% increased risk of suffering from various health problems during their first 16 years of life.
Verneuil’s disease – or hidradenitis suppurativa – affects at least 1% of the French population, according to the Foundation for Medical Research. This chronic skin pathology is characterized by painful nodules (rounded and protruding skin formations), and abscesses (clumps of pus collected in a cavity), depending on the Orphanet. They are generally located on hairy areas rich in sweat glands (under the skin, whose role is to secrete sweat and eliminate waste from the body).
In a new study, published in the journal JAMA Dermatologyresearchers from the University of Montreal and of McGill Universityboth in Canada, have established a link between Verneuil disease and an increased risk for the affected pregnant woman and her baby.
Pregnancy: examining the impact of pro-inflammatory cytokines in women with Verneuil disease
As indicated by theNational Research Agency“sustained production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in skin lesions suggests defective regulation of inflammation”. Verneuil’s disease is therefore linked to high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, substances secreted by the immune system. During their work, the scientists were interested in the impact of these pro-inflammatory cytokines in pregnant women suffering from Verneuil’s disease and their babies. These substances are already associated with various risks during pregnancy: gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, premature birth. To measure the risks, they analyzed more than 1.3 million deliveries, among which 1,332 women had Verneuil’s disease.
61% increased risk of gestational diabetes with Verneuil disease
Thus, scientists observed that pregnant women suffering from this disease had a higher percentage of risks than others, for certain complications:
- 55% for hypertensive disorders
- 61% for gestational diabetes
- 38% deaths
- 28% for premature births
- 29% for congenital malformations.
The risk of hospitalization was also twice as high for these patients and 31% higher for their child, for various health problems, during their first 16 years of life. Faced with these resultsscientists call for pregnant women with Verneuil disease and their children to be monitored over the long term to prevent these risks and take care of them as quickly as possible.
