Birthmarks

Definition

They are marks that are present on the skin. This types of marks present on newborn babies. Mostly it is found that in every ten children at least one children is born with a birthmark and between fifty and sixty percent of them will require some form of treatment. Some birthmarks present on the skin of the children for life, while others fade away without any treatment.

There are several types of birthmarks can present on the body on new born babies. These ares-

• Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM)
• Cafe au lait Spot
• Lymphatic Malformation
• Mongolian Spot
• Port Wine Stain or Nevus Flammeus
• Salmon Patch or Nevus Simplex
• Strawberry Hemangioma
• Venous Malformation
• Venous Stain

Causes

The exact causes of birthmarks are unknown. A birthmark (also known as nevus) is a result of a development abnormality of the skin. Some birthmarks appear because a child has extra color (pigment) in his or her skin. Other birthmarks appear because a child's blood vessels did not develop normally or are grouped together too closely.

One possible cause is that during the embryonic stage of fetal development cells that belong in the mesoderm (blood forming middle germ layer) get displaced in the ectoderm (skin forming outermost cell layer). This leads to proliferation of blood vessels or abnormal pigmentation in the dermal and epidermal structures of the skin due this resulting in birthmarks.

Symptoms

Common symptoms are-

1. Spots on the skin on the new born children that start before or just after birth.
2. Mostly marks on the skin that are red or other colors. These marks are a different color than the rest of the skin. It is mainly brown, black, bluish, or blue-gray.
3. It may be containing hair.
4. It may be variable in size.
5. Skin markings that look like blood vessels
6. Skin markings that develop before or shortly after birth

Treatment

Many birthmarks such as strawberry hemangiomas, cavernous hemangiomas, salmon patches are temporary and require no treatment. But the birthmarks that are found on internal organs always need treatment and may be it create more serious problems. Treatment is most common for hemangiomas and port-wine stains and can include corticosteroids and surgery.

Doctors can sometimes advice to use laser surgery to treat birthmarks so that they can't be seen as much. It's important to remember, though, that birthmarks really aren't a big deal and kids who have them aren't any different from kids who don't.

Port-wine stains are difficult to remove completely, but laser therapy can usually make them lighter.