Autoimmune progesterone dermatitis: onset in a women without previous exogenous progesterone exposure

Autoimmune progesterone dermatitis is a rare clinical entity that may be seen by the family practitioner, gynecologist, or dermatologist. Recognition of the entity is paramount in the therapy of this easily treated condition. We report a case of a 36-year-old woman with a recurrent facial dermatitis of many months' duration. We found the cutaneous eruption to be temporally related to her menstrual cycle. The patient denied any changes in her diet, cosmetics, medications, or soaps that could account for the dermatitis. Despite no previous exposure to exogenous progesterone, the diagnosis of autoimmune progesterone dermatitis was made. The patient was cured by oophorectomy.