My daughter has a small "strawberry angioma" birthmark on her nose. We have been told by our pediatrician that this type of birthmark usually fades away around age 2. My daughter is 1 and it has not changed at all yet. I have an appointment with a top Dallas birthmark specialist later this year, to have him take a look at it.
I would really appreciate any comments from other moms out there that have dealt with similar birthmarks on the face. I am just very torn about what to do. We are struggling with whether or not to have it surgically removed.
Today, we went to see Dr. Jay Burns. He gave us advice to wait longer, to see if the mark will diminish on its own over time. He did offer the suggestion of laser treatment. We will wait to decide what to do. I believe that after seeing Dr. Burns, I will ask my Pediatrician for another referral to get a second opinion. Thank you to everyone who sent comments to me for this posting. I really appreciated it.
My son had one on the side of his face, just by the eyebrows. We noticed it first when he was 2 weeks old. It started as a very small pink stain I would say. It went to a bumpy red "strawberry". We were told it would go away at around 6 months to 1 year old. It started to fade away at around 1.5 year old and it was all gone by the time he was 2. Hang in there, it will go away. Good luck.
My son has three; one on his eye lid, under his chin, and on the back of his head. He is only 6 months old so his Dr. said to watch them but they should go away in 6 months to 1 year.
If my son was 2 years old and still had them I would take him to a specialist also. I would say to use your best mom instinct, a second opinion couldn't hurt.
I also was told that my daughters birthmarks would fade--by age three. And while they diminished some, compared to what they were just after she was born, they were definitely noticeable, especially in pictures.
Last July (when my daughter was just over two) we made an appointment with Dr Jay Burns who is a leading pediatric plastic surgeon and who works out of Childrens Hospital. His office is off of 35 and Mockingbird in the old Bank One building if that helps. Anyway, he told us the marks would not fade any more than they had and, in fact, said they might become darker and/or grow with age and exposure to the sun. We made the decision to have the birthmarks removed, partly because Dr. Burns told us that my daughter was an ideal candidate for laser surgery--she's blond haired and blue eyed and very fair skinned. He prepared us that the process could take three separate procedures. To our great joy, the marks were removed after only one procedure. She did have to undergo general anesthesia, which has with it other factors to consider, but we are very pleased with the overall experience. We would recommend Dr. Burns and having the procedure done if your daughter is a good candidate for laser procedures. Hope this helps.
-R.
My daughter has one on her heel. When I asked the ped about it, they said it would go away by the time she was two. It was the same color until last year. After her third birthday, I started to notice it going away. It is very faded now. I think it depends on the kid. They did give me the option of lasering it off but since it was on her heel I didn't bother. I am sure it is different with it being on the face. I think you should use your best judgment. You are the mom, and YOU know best!!
my son had a large one on the front of his leg. it was really bumpy and quite red. he's now 19 months old and i really have to look to find it - it's just about completely gone. best wishes!!
My daughter is now 44 years old and still has hers. It is on the top of her head where most people's hair seems to start from right on the crown. It was red when she was born, but over the years now it looks like a little colony of warts. It has driven her crazy all her life, it hurts if she combs or brushes it too hard and makes it sore. My pediatrician told me that when her cranium finished growing together as it should have, she just forgot to grow any hair there. IT is and was, about the size of a quarter, maybe a little larger. She is obsessed with covering it up so she keeps her hair long on top so she can comb it over the spot. It also is like having a cowlick up there, the hair goes in several directions around the spot. It's hard to comb it over the place. Anyway, whatever it is, moms should take care of getting it removed so as not to cause life long grief, as it has in our case. I wish I had known back on 1966 that something could be done for it.
L. - My son had one that covered the majority of his forehead, and he also has one on the back of his neck (so do I). We met with Dr. Jay Burns to have some scars revised for him related to a 3 month NICU stay, and Dr. Burns suggested since he was going to be under we may as well laser his forehead at the same time. Quite honestly we weren't so bothered by it, because of other issues, but insurance paid for it because he was still a baby. I'll be honest - I was horrified by his forehead when we first saw him. He looked as if he had been beat with a bat. BUT, now it looks great. He may need one more laser treatment, but Dr. Burns said to wait a year. He told us the same thing as someone said earlier - they most likely will get darker over time if exposed. And as far as pain, my son had none that we could tell anyway.
Dr. Burns was great, and I would definitely call him to at least consult with him. He came highly recommended by one of our neonatologists, and his staff is great too.
Good Luck! L.:)
Hi L.,
My daughter has a strawberry hemangioma as well, next to her eye. She has been to a plastic surgeon and other specialists on other medical issues, and I've gotten opinions from several doctors. I think it is more realistic to say that most hemangiomas fade by the age of 3 to 5 years. Hers grew throughout most of her first year and now at 14.5 months it is stable, perhaps slightly shrunk but not really noticeably smaller. (I think it's about as big as an eraser head.) Our dr's have reco'd to leave it alone as long as it is not interfering with the structure of her eye, etc. However, I think I would have to re-evaluate if it did not fade by the time she is an older child (5+ years old). General anesthesia (required for removal) always carries risks, so I would have to feel pretty strongly about removal. At the same time, Dallas has some top-notch plastic surgeons and it sounds like you got a great referral. Best wishes on your decision.
My nephew has one on his nose. It tripled in size within the first year and has stayed about the same size for the next 2 1/2 years. His docter says hat most strawberry birthmarks fade/ disappear by the age of 9 (50% by the age of 5). So now we wait. Even with as big as it is, we really dont notice it. he has huge blue eyes and long lashes that would make any model jealous. At 3 1/2 years old he is already a ladys man, telling us that the 5 year old twins at the daycare are both his girlfriends. So my advice is to wait alittle longer, surround your daughter with love, and just keep an eye out for any complications she might be having (ie breathing or swelling since its on her nose)
hello! i don't know if you even check this anymore since it has been so many years, but i was wondering if you could share more about what happened with your daughter's birthmark? my daughter has two. one on her tummy and one on her cheek. she is only two months old so i am curious to see what might happen in the future. so far our pediatrician has told us to wait and see. any updates you could share would be greatly appreciated! thank you! :-)
I had one on my back as a kid. I don't think it went away completely until I was about 4 or so. I'd give it a while...
