Recurrent belly dancer dyskinesia in pregnancy with postpartum resolution
Belly dancer dyskinesia (BDD) is a rare movement disorder characterized by involuntary, repetitive contractions of the abdominal wall. Pregnancy-associated BDD is exceptionally uncommon, and recurrence in subsequent pregnancies has rarely been reported. We describe the case of a 29-year-old woman in her first pregnancy who developed involuntary abdominal movements at 16 weeks. Her medical history included hypertension and multiple uterine fibroids. Neurological assessment, laboratory investigations, and spinal magnetic resonance imaging were unremarkable, and a clinical diagnosis of BDD was established. Symptoms persisted throughout pregnancy and resolved immediately after delivery. Two years later, during a second pregnancy, similar movements recurred at 15 weeks, again resolving completely after delivery. Recurrence during two consecutive pregnancies suggests a pregnancy-related trigger for BDD, and complete postpartum resolution highlights the self-limiting course of this benign condition.
Authors
- Sofia Rodrigues
- Marta Brito (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8643-3779)
- Aisha Ahmad (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6509-1898)
- Inês Antunes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-1462-8994)
- Maria Henriques (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1970-3599)
Institutions
- Unidade Local de Saúde de São José (PT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Obstetric Medicine
- Published
- 2026-10-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1753495x261500175
- Primary Topic
- Neurological and metabolic disorders
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00