Baby’s birthmarks: are they forever?
There was a time when birthmarks were associated with good luck. But today, some of the superstition has been replaced by suspicion, regarding some types of birthmark.
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The majority of babies are born with some small skin blemish – often known as a birthmark. Nevus (or Nevi in the plural), are made up of pigmented cells; they have a range of colours and come in different shapes and sizes.
They can appear anywhere on the body: the head, arms and legs, the soles of the feet or the stomach. A birthmark’s size doesn’t usually surpass 2 cm in diameter – even though large marks do sometimes exist and can cover part of the back. And a large number of these harmless birthmarks fade into non-existence over the first few years… but not all of them.
There are birthmarks and birthmarks…
Around 5% of babies are born with a birthmark but their exact cause is not known. The scientific name for these marks is nevus (latin for ‘mark’). Not to be confused with beauty spots (melanocytic nevi).
The nevus can take many different forms and the one that interests us in particular is the nevus sebaceous, which affects newborn babies and young children. This type of birthmark typically appears on the face or scalp, distinguishable by its pale colour and lack of hair, and is filled with keratin.
These kinds of marks on the body are mostly benign, but it is still necessary to keep an eye on them and actively take note of any change in the nevus from birth. With elaborate photographic techniques, a dermatologist can verify whether or not the mark is benign and whether it’s evolving to become a melanoma.
The more significant the mark, the higher the risk that is could turn cancerous, even if this is only a small probability. The area on the body where the mark appears does not affect whether or not there is any risk.
Do these marks disappear by themselves?
These birthmarks don’t present any danger, and, except for in cases where a malignant melanoma is diagnosed, it’s not necessary to have them removed.
It’s possible that over time, these marks can sprout hairs (Becker’s nevus or conjunctive nevus), grow in size, change colour (either lighter or darker), or even change shape.
The nevus sebaceous, however, will sometimes be removed during adolescence as a preventive measure. If a specialist feels a baby’s birthmark is suspicious, it may be removed under local anaesthetic, which poses no threat to baby’s health.
There are no set rules for this; everything depends very much on the nature of the birthmark and the dermatologist’s diagnosis.
Big birthmarks – Giant Nevus Syndrome
1 in 5000 children has a form of congenital giant nevus. Its size can cover part of the torso. These epidermal nevi affect internal skin tissue and can reach the muscle also, or even the nervous system (in the latter case, there is a risk that the birthmark might become cancerous).
From this perspective, giant nevi require extra vigilance as the risk of the birthmark developing into a melanoma is more pronounced. Regular visits to your GP must be made (every 6 months) so that treatment may be given at the earliest sign of anything suspicious.
Despite the mark being aesthetically displeasing, it cannot be completely removed because of its size (which can surpass 5 cm). If one was to remove it in its entirety, there would not be enough epidermal tissue left to cover the area. In addition, laser removal techniques cannot be used in this case: laser can only be used to remove superficial marks on the skin and the effects of a laser’s heat on the behaviour of a nevus have yet to be measured.
Copyright © 2011 Doctissimo
Posted 25.05.2011
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