...She's had it since birth, super cute (I think), right on the side of her nose. It's not very dark and kind of looks like a birthmark. It was diagnosed as a spider hemangioma when she was very young. It's no big deal. It doesn't darken in the sun or anything. I've always thought it was cute!!
Well, she's going to be 6 on Saturday, and in a matter of MINUTES (she's never asked about it before that I can recall), she asked what it was, I told her what it was and that it's adorable, and now she's FLIPPING OUT and telling me she wants it removed.
What would you do? If it bothers her, of course I'll look into what her options are. When it was first diagnosed, they told me they wouldn't treat it until she got older, and now she's older. Has anyone or your child had something like this removed from your face? What kind of procedure do they use? Will it scar? Did you leave it there? Should I wait until she's older? (She's a drama queen, I'm going to hear about this from now until forever regardless of what we do)...
For now I would go to the store and find some liquid foundation that could cover it.
Then I would talk to a dermatologist about it. If she has to wait, its better coming from the dr. than from you.
M.
Hi R.,
I asked a similar question a while back and got some great answers!!
http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/3239731298587246593
We have left R's alone. The one on his eyelid has gotten smaller and less red, but is still there. The spider one on his cheek is still quite large. He just turned 3 so I am still hoping it will fade.
good luck!
Its simple to ask a dematologist to look at it and have them tell her she needs to wait till shes about 12. Most of those marks can fade over time and be gone by that age. At 10 or 12 if its not gone and growing then you can have it taken care of. I saw a special on tv about this type of birth mark and some can grow and become a real problem. They are very vascular and sometimes not easy to just remove. But most are simple surface growths and laser will do the trick. A kid I used to know had one next to his eye, about the size of a golf ball and he had it removed when he was 16. Took a couple treaments and was done. A good friend in HS had a strawberry birthmark on half her face, and she had some pretty terrific makeup that covered it. As friends, I didnt care when she let it show. She was my friend and I never teased her at all. Actually, I thought, of the two of us,,she was the pretty one,,lol. Tell your daughter thats where the angels kissed her just before she was born.
Hemagiomas involute over time, meaning that they lessen and lessen and sort of "fold in" on themselves. Talk to her pediatrician about it. If her emotional state is really enough to drive treatment at this point, she needs to be referred to a dermatologist for laser/phototherapy. You NEVER want to remove these surgically. It leaves a scar. Everyone scars differently, so there really isn't a way to predict, even with the most precise surgical technique and most delicate tissue handling principles, how a scar will turn out. Also, to close things surgically, you have to make an ellipse around the to be able to close the wound in a flat linear fashion. Rule of thumb is that the length of the scar will be between 2-3 times the width or widest part of the lesion. She will be trading one discoloration for another.
Look into having it removed. Why not.
My 3 yr old has one on her chest. So for her we can cover it with clothes. I would talk with your dr and see what he/she says. If it really bothers her try uing a cover up. That may make her feel better about it. Like I said my daughter is 3 and hers is starting to get smaller and lighter. Hers is about the size of a nickel and it sat high, but now it is even with her skin and about the size of a dime now. Get all the info that you can from your dr and do some research. Everyone is different and things will turn out different. Best of luck to you!
My daughter had one on her lip. We had it removed when she was 18 months. I dont see why you cant ask a dr about removing it. The surgery was about an hr and my daughter doesnt remember a thing. (tiny scar.... she is 9 now)
My son has this on his forehead. It has faded quite a bit over time but if he gets hot or cries and gets angry it is more noticeable. I would have opted for laser if it wasn't fading. However, to me it is not that noticeable and probably won't take any action on it unless he becomes selfconsious about it.
my son (also six) has one in same spot. I realize i may be in a minority here but i think she is old enough to be part of decision on what to do,,,
at 5 he asked about having it removed because he got sick of his friends asking about it
we went to a ped dermotologist who explained the surgery to him. They use lasers. She explained it would feel like little rubber bands snapping and that they would need to tape gauze over his eye.
He listen to it all.. and said NO WAY.. and that was the end of that. A year later you can barely see it and now is upset it is gone!
My 2 year old daughter has a very prominent one on her nose. It's big, it's puffy, it's red and purple it's NOTICEABLE. It's about 3/4 inch long by 1/2 wide. It gets comments all the time form people thinking she got badly hurt on her nose. I'm told it may go away by ages 3 to 5, but it has shown no signs of fading so far, and I'm not banking on it.
So far I think I would not have it removed. Those near and dear to her will always treat her well, and I want to teach her she's beautiful no matter what, but obviously when she's older, I don't want her needlessly suffering. BUT, I really don't think surgery would work well to remove it either....Sorry no answer here, it's a tough call. I probably wouldn't want her to treat it until she was in her teens and it may be gone by then.
A quick look at Wikipedia taught me that these usually "resolve by age 10." If it's not that bad looking, and it will go away by itself, I would say she should learn to live with it and accept herself as she is.
Definitely pose your questions to a professional (pediatrician, dermatologist, whatever).
I have not been through this... just throwing in my two cents! Good luck. :)
I wonder what caused this to change - her all of a sudden asking about it - have her friends been asking her about it?
It is her face....so she has to live with it every day...if a dermatologist or facial surgeon says that it will NOT impact her future growth by removing it or leaving a horrible scar - which to me would be worse than a hemangioma - then I would have it removed...you could also do like Amy S did and take her to the dermatologist and have it explained to her....
GOOD LUCK!!! I bet she's beautiful just the way she is!!
