ABSTRACT
Dermatitis herpetiformis is a pruritic, vesicular skin disease. The skin lesions have a characteristic symmetrical distribution on the extensor surfaces of the extremities, upper back, buttocks, and other areas. The dose-dependent nature of the responses of the gut mucosa to gluten challenge in dermatitis herpetiformis patients. Celiac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis constitute two interrelated but distinct diseases. However, while it is evident that virtually all dermatitis herpetiformis cases have either latent or active gluten-sensitive enteropathy of the celiac disease type, several observations indicate that the skin lesions may be due to an additional disease mechanism. The presence of IgA-endomysial antibodies in dermatitis herpetiformis is related to the intestinal pathology and not to the skin lesions or to their responses to treatment with sulfones. The patchy distribution of the disease-specific IgA deposits in the dermal papillae may lead to occasional false negative findings.
