Hemangioma & Birthmarks
Archived Q&A and Reviews
Questions
- Strawberry mark on baby's lip
- Hemangioma on baby-- operation?!
- 4-month-old has strawberry hemangiona on her face
- 10 week old daughter has two hemangiomas on her face
- 13-month-old girl developed a hemangioma on her cheek
- 15 month old son has a strawberry mark on his forehead
- Lightening a birthmark
Strawberry mark on baby's lip
May 2013
Hi Worried Mama,
I understand your concern. My son had seven, count 'em seven strawberry hemangiomas when he was a baby. The most prominent were on his chest and his wrist, both reaching a diameter of fifty-cent piece, and the chest one reaching an elevated mass of about 1/3 inch. To reassure you, they have ALL subsided, and did so within about 5 years. He has sort of wrinkly skin where the two biggest ones were, but at 12 considers them part of who he is and would not part with them. The five others are gone with no trace. We did not treat them medically.
You may already know this, but many cultures consider these birthmarks to be truly special; they are a part of babyhood and will not last so they are praised while the child has them. Some consider them to be marks of a special person. I remember once at a yoga class the teacher praised my son's hemagiomas as a power marks.
Okay, but we live in this culture, and yes people will ask about it, especially kids. Mostly, kids would ask about the ''owie'' on my son's chest and hand. Since your daughter's is on her lip, that's a more prominent place and you may feel more inclined to do something. Every dermatologist I spoke to (many, many in my in-law family) said they would go away and not to treat them. However I do know of people who treated their children's more prominent marks.
You still might have to wait because the marks continue to grow for 12-18 months, and it's likely best that you will need to wait until it has reached its maximum size. Treatment will likely involve cutting the skin and stitches of some kind if it is as prominent as you say. As far as I know, laser treatment only works with the flatter ones. So if you treat, your daughter will have stitches and some scarring where it was. Surgeons can work so that there will be little if any scarring long term, but you can't avoid it in the short term. You might want to check with a pediatric dermatologist to see what they say about process and recovery.
In the meantime, love that mark. It's part of your daughter. It tells the world what you already know: she's a special being in this world to be loved. Carolyn
Our son developed a strawberry mark on his wrist just after birth and, like your child's mark, it grew and got brighter over the first couple years of his life. Our pediatrician also said that strawberry marks were fairly common and usually disappeared later. I'm not sure I believed him as I watched the thing grow for the first two years. But eventually it stopped growing. Our son was aware of it and called it his strawberry and it hung around for another couple of years. Then, it just sort of vanished. I can't even say when. We noticed it started fading around 4. He's now 5 1/2 and I can't tell you where it used to be. I don't even remember which wrist it was on. I also had a friend whose baby had one on it's forehead (same age as my kid) and I can't say I've seen that child's mark in years either. So, I'd try to listen to your pediatrician. While it seems hard to believe now, these marks can and do disappear on their own. missing strawberry
My son had one of those. It was completely gone by the age of 2 1/2. I would suggest the ''wait and see'' approach for now. J
I would like to strongly recommend that you go for second opinion and visit Dr. Ilona J Frieden in San Francisco. She is one of the top 10 doctors in the US for birthmarks and vascular anomalies. Also, while I heard that sometimes it's best to wait (as it was recommended to you) all cases are different and you should be seen and evaluated by specialist. http://www.dermatology.ucsf.edu/faculty_staff/StaffBios/FriedenIlona.aspx Marina
Our 17 month-old son also has a hemangioma on his face -- his left cheek below his eye. It appeared when he was a couple of weeks old as faint red blood vessels and grew until he was about 6 months. At its peak it was grew to be about the size of a penny, vibrant red, and raised about a quarter inch. It hasn't yet shrunk much in diameter but its color and level of inflammation has significantly decreased. It is now a grey-ish pink color and almost flush with the rest of his cheek. We expect it will also shrink in diameter as it disappears. (I had one as a child and I couldn't find the spot now if I examined my face in the mirror.)
We took a ''wait and see'' approach'' because it wasn't in a location where it threatened to obstruct his eye (or anything else), is completely benign, and likely to disappear completely within a couple of years, so I didn't want to subject my son to unnecessary surgery or medication. I was also told by his pediatrician that surgery to remove it can leave more of a scar than just letting it run its course.
I don't see it as a ''disfigurement'' but just part of my son's sweet little face. In fact I barely notice it at all anymore. Other young kids will often point it out when they first meet my son and I just explain to them what it is, but I don't see anyone reacting with revulsion. Sometimes other parents will stop me and tell me with fondness that their child had one, that it went away entirely, and that it was part of what made that child special. At this age when my son isn't at all self-conscious or concerned about it, I tend to agree.
Waiting it out
Our first kid had a hemangioma on his face (and a smaller one on his back), and when he was about 6 months to a year old, EVERYONE would ask about it or say something like ''Oh, he scraped his nose! Poor baby!'' (They were just trying to engage and be kind, but it always hurt because I was constantly reminded of this awful thing.) We eventually got him checked out by the specialists in San Francisco (I can't remember what med group it is anymore; it is a well-respected center) who said that we should wait. At the time, I was totally obsessed with this mark on my baby and almost wished the doctors would say that they had to operate, even though, logically, I did not want to subject my kid to that, just to make it go away. The doctors said it would be gone by the time he was three or four. In fact, he still has the traces of the strawberry. But my feelings about it have changed a lot too. When he was a baby, I was terrified that it would leave him with a permanently altered nose. And, actually, it has (the skin is softer and sort of pliable on that side of his nose), but no one--really, I'm not kidding--has asked about it for at least 5 years now. We've never discussed it with him either, though one time he referred to one of his nostrils as ''the bigger one,'' as if everyone has one of those.
Had a strawberry baby too
Our 3 year old daughter has a very large hemangioma (about 10 cm diameter) on the side of her face. It first began to appear at around 6 weeks of age, and our pediatrician wasn't even able to diagnose. We ended up seeing a series of specialists and finally found a pediatric dermatologist who specializes exclusively in hemangiomas. I would highly recommend you see a specialist as the standard of care in many instances has changed from 'wait and see.' Our daughter is taking propranolol (a beta blocker) which has fewer side effects than the older steroid treatment. Dr. Ilona Frieden at UCSF is renowned nationally for her research on hemangiomas. We are within the Kaiser network so we have been seeing Dr. Linda Beets-Shay at Kaiser Oakland who consults with Dr. Frieden. Happy to share more about our experience if you are interested. Amy
My daughter has two. One on her left flank and the other on her shoulder. She is now 2 1/2 and the one on her flank is almost gone. The one on her shoulder, we can tell that it is less elevated but this one will take more time to disappear. I think it will be something managable for her.
But like you, I was worried, worried of what other people will say to her or to me. So now I decided that I just don't care even though sometimes people are not very tactful...
Good luck, I am sure it will almost or completely disappear before she is 6 years old. I understand!
Just want to chime in and say my child also had a large hemangioma on her face. Like a previous response, my child also got a lot of ''oh, you fell down'' comments. But these were all from adults. Kids never mentioned it at all and it never troubled her. On the advice of our pediatrician in the East Bay we took her to UCSF for a consult at 18 months. They told us she would need surgery, that the hemangioma would not fully resolve. She had surgery around 3-4 at UCSF childrens' hospital. They were beyond great. It was a bit of a tough recovery for a few weeks--difficult to eat etc. But not a big deal really.
This is all just to say that sometimes they go away and sometimes they don't. I think the doctors will be able to predict this fairly well. Best of luck. a mom
Hemangioma on baby-- operation?!
March 2008
Our 10 month old baby has a deep hemangioma in a highly visible spot. We went to see a specialist at UCSF and she said we should consider treating the hemangioma with an operation sometime in the next 2 years ''before the baby is aware'' that people are repeatedly responding to the hemangioma. I would love to hear from someone who went ahead with the operation because, of course, it's hard to think about putting our baby through even a relatively simple operation. What were your considerations around age/time? What was your experience of the operation? How successful was it?
HUGE THANKS!!!!!!
Want To Do The Right Thing
Our daughter had a fairly large Hemangioma on the top of her head and it was bright pink and raised. We had to be careful brushing or combing her hair as they are very vascular but we are really happy we let it be because over time it's flattened out and is barely visible. Our now 2 year old has a flat lightened colored Hemangioma but it's almost gone! I would suggest getting another opinion because as long as they are not causing any harm maybe you will be able to leave it and let it take it's course. I know we got tons of stares and people saying ''Oh my what is that, is your baby ok'', but in the end it's almost gone and no surgery had to be involved. Good luck! jennifer
There are cultures in the world where hemangiomas are highly valued , even considered lucky or auspicious. Alas, ours is not one. However, one reason I heard that some cultures value them is that they are so fleeting. My son had 7 strawberry hemangiomas as a baby. Two were quite large and prominent. Yes, he did get stares, and at the pool where they all showed, there were some children who acted scared or rude. Yet the hemangiomas were so lovely! One looked like a big kiss right on his chest; another looked like a button on his hand. The other five were smaller and drew less attention. Every doctor I talked to told me to wait before doing anything about them. Perhaps you've heard too--they tend to get bigger for 9-12 months, then start to get smaller, and most go away completely with no medical intervention. You can still see traces of the two biggest hemangiomas on my now 7-y-o son, but traces only. The other five are gone. When the two big ones did not completely disappear by age 7, I asked my son if he wanted to have them removed, and he insisted, absolutely insisted that he loved them and wanted to keep them for as long as possible. I love them too, really, and am glad we still see traces of them. Get a second opinion. And wait a while, too, to see if they resolve on their own. Carolyn
Our daughter had her hemangioma removed at 8 months. Hers was on her torso, but large (like an avocado) and also deep. The outer skin couldn't support the growth of the tumor and was ulcerating, causing pain, and we had to have her on antibiotics for fear of an infection while we tried many alternative therapies (like off label use of a growth hormone to speed up recovery of the ulcer), nothing worked so we opted for surgery. We were in New York at the time and went to the leading birthmark surgeon, Dr. Milton Waner. She had a 2 hour surgery, and it was one of the most difficult experiences waiting for her. But, it was the BEST thing we ever did for her too. She recovered so quickly (maybe a week at most -- children heal so quickly!). She has an almost invisible line along her torso (about 7 inches long). I highly recommend Dr. Waner. At the very least, find out who he recommends out here. If you have any questions, please email. susan
I know that many childrens' hemangiomas do in fact disappear over a period of several years. My son had one on his arm - fairly big and noticeably dark red- but it did in fact fade almost completely by the time he was 3 (now I can only see faintest outline if I'm really looking). On the other hand, my niece had a very large hemangioma on her face which covered much of her eyebrow and was pushing down a bit on her eyelid. Ultimately, my brother and his wife decided to have laser surgery done on it and they are VERY glad they did b/c subsequent docs have told them this one was quite deep and would not have gone away on its own. It was a very hard decision for them at the time, but made easier by the fact that it was starting to press down on her eyelid and the docs had concerns about that. They had to have a series of laser surgeries- maybe 6 or so altogether (this was in NYC with a doc renowned for doing laser on hemangiomas). My always-adorable niece is now 3 and doing great (pretty sure she doesnt remember the surgeries) and at this point, only a very faint outline is there. I wanted to throw in the 2 cents from a perspective of a child whose hemangioma would not have just faded away. Good luck with your decision! Trish
4-month-old has strawberry hemangiona on her face
Oct 2007
Our 4 month old baby daughter has a strawberry hemangiona on her face, about one inch wide and quite puffy. our periatrician assures us that there is nothing to worry about, that it will go away, and there is no treatment for it. when i look up ''hemangiona'' it seems that statistics say it could take up to ten years for it to go away. that worries me. if anyone reading this has had experience with their child having a strawberry heangiona, i would love to hear about how long it lasted etc. thank you very much. fd
My daughter had one too - it was a small one (bigger than a dime, smaller than a nickel) and it was on her head, near the crown. It's now pretty covered by hair as she is 18 mos, but it is also almost gone! It's no longer pronounced/puffy, just slightly red an the size of a large mole. anon
My son (now almost 4) has a hemanginoma. We were upset at first because it was so large and he was so small! It popped up when he was just a few weeks, and I'll bet your daughters at 4 months is probably just growing before your eyes and it can be quite upsetting. There is a highly regarded specialist at UCSF, I don't recall her name but my dermatologist Dr Glogau in SF recommended her. My pediatrition did as well. She gave my son a series of injections to stop the growth and help flatten it out. This was covered by insurance.
It can be quite frightening and upsetting but please rest assured that they do fade, and they do go away. My son is almost 4 now and we LOVE his spot! His face has grown and matured and it's nearly gone but we just see it as part of him and a little reminder of his infancy. I think we will be truly sad when the spot is completely gone because we think it is just so cute like the rest of him.
When his sister showed up we joked with him - hey? where's her spot? and my husband and I have found various discolorations on ourselves to point out, see - Mama has a spot on her tummy, Daddy has a spot on his leg. Please know however, that our lightheartedness about the whole think was a slow transition over the last few years. But you will adjust as the spot fades and your child grows. I'd check into finding that specialist at UCSF and start getting some treatments early on. It will get better with time.
My daughter, now 4, had a hemangioma on her forehead. It appeared maybe a month or so after her birth, can't remember exactly when. About the size of a pea, bright red, somewhat raised. It peaked at about 6 months as I recall, and was gone by the time she was about a year old. The only evidence of its existence now is in her baby pictures. anon
Our daughter was born with a hemangioma similar to the one you describe. She just turned one, and it has slowly faded over the year to almost nothing. Your baby's will probably do the same. Try not worry!! I know that's easier said than done. diana
My 11-month old daughter has had one on her ear since birth (they even re-tested her hearing to make sure it wasn't something hearing-related). It grew redder and puffier in her first few months of life, and we were very worried. Her pediatrician told us it would likely go away within a few years. It is now hardly noticeable! The puffiness is gone, and it has faded quite a bit. I really think it will be completely unnoticeable in another year. esther
My son had seven, count 'em, seven hemangiomas as a baby. They ranged in size and puffiness, and were scattered across his body. The most prominent ones were on his chest and on his wrist. He is now seven years old, and four of them are completely gone, while three are quite faded. Your doctor is right, most hemangiomas fade on their own within a few years. If they don't and it's a problem for you or your daughter, there are laser treatments that will take them away. But give them time to resolve on their own. And don't be surprised if you find yourself missing them as they fade and start to go away. There are cultures that consider hemaniomas to be quite lucky markings because they are so fleeting. Try to see your daughter's that way and it will be. another mom
Our daughter has a hemangioma of about that size, originally puffy or pillowy, on her chest... she's now six, and while it's flattened to a significant degree, it's still quite visible. We've not really investigated options for dealing with it, but it's not as visible as one on the face would be, and she seems fine with it for now. Dad
My daughter was born with two hemangioma: one on her neck (one inch by one inch) and one very small one near her anus. She is nearly three and the one on her neck is quite faded. The one on her bum looks the same. During infancy, the hemangioma were puffy and red and looked like they were fragile enough to bleed when you touched them (but never did). Your pediatrician gave you good advice. They do fade with time. Greta
My daughter, now 5, had a hemangioma on her lower lip. At first we too received the standard advice--wait. I am pretty conservative medically so this seemed fine to me. When my daughter was around 1 to 1.5 yrs old we took her to Dr Frieden at UCSF. You will see from the archives that she is the expert in the Bay Area and we are lucky to have her here. She was able to tell us at that appointment that my daughter would definitely require surgery to remove the hemangioma. She wanted us to wait until the hemangioma had begun to resolve on its own and until she was older than 2. We had the surgery at UCSF last year when my daughter was 4. We felt we had the best possible care and although it was harrowing everything worked out very well. At UCSF--if Dr. Frieden recommends it--you can take your child to the vascular anomalies clinic where specialists from a large variety of fields evaluate your child and come up with a course of action. So I guess the main point I would emphasize here is that Dr. Frieden will be able to tell you what the best course of action is. Of course, this will depend on the case. I know of many in which the hemangioma did resolve completely on its own.
To me the social/psychological ramifications are as important as the medical. Until past the age of 3 NOT A SINGLE CHILD ever teased or said a mean word to my child. She went to daycare and pre-school had plenty of friends; she is exremely outgoing and socially confident (much more so than her parents!)
BUT the problem was the adults. Almost every single day an adult would ask me in front of her ''what happened to her?'' ''What's wrong with her'' etc. And all this for a birthmark. My husband and I were often enraged and tried to figure out ways to forestall comments but this was not always possible. Also, many well meaning people in stores for example would ask my daughter ''did you fall down?'' she would just be confused until she was mature enough to answer. It was just incredible to me since no one would walk up to an adult they don't know and ask ''what's wrong with you?'' etc.
A little after the age of three I noticed some children would ask my daughter about it. They were kids in parks etc. not kids at her school. But there were always friendly and simply curious. They never teased. Still I wish we had had the surgery maybe 1 year to 6 months earlier for this reason. anon
10 week old daughter has two hemangiomas on her face
July 2005
Does anyone know of a good pediatric dermatologist in the East Bay? My 10 week old daughter has two hemangiomas on her face. I would like to get a second opinion about possible treatment options as I have been told to let them grow bigger for a year and hope that they then fade away. Anyone have experience with a child with this vascular birthmark?
Our 15 mo. old daughter was born with a 4 mm. hemangioma that has not grown nor diminished, as predicted. It is inside her hairline so we have felt no pressure to alter it. Just before she turned one, it became a bit flaky, a few white flecks and the ped. thought this a sign that it would go away. Alas- she still has it. No advice for you, just our situation... a little advice, afterall: I would wait to see what happens within her first year. christina
13-month-old girl developed a hemangioma on her cheek
May 2003
Hi We are parents of 13 months twin girls. Unfortunately, one of our daughter's developed a hemangioma on the left side of her cheek at three weeks old. We have been lucky enough to have the *best* care availble. Dr Freiden at UCSF and now we see Dr. Reinisch in LA. We live in Berkeley but will go LA for a follow up surgery in May. I would like to meet other families who are experincing or have experienced Hemangioma - just to talk:). anon
When I was 14 mo. old, I had a very large hemagioma removed surgically; it was so large my parents had to authorize for pictures to be published in a medical journal. They removed a hernia in my belly button at the same time. All went well I guess...I don't remember a thing. I have a scar on my left side but always wore bikinis anyway. I am 42 now & married with 2 healthy kids. Jenny
My 14 month old daughter also has hemangioma, but on her left eyelid. And we also see Dr. Frieden at UCSF. It has stopped growing after using a steriodal ointment and so have elected not to do surgery at this time. But it's an option we'd like to keep open if the hemangioma does not recede. I don't want it to affect her self-esteem as she gets older. I'd love to talk more. Frances
My son has several hemangiomas, two of them significant, but on the advice of his doctor we did not seek treatment for them. Rather, we are letting them resolve on their own. Now that he is two-and-a-half, we can really see them going away. I'm not sure how long it will take for them to disappear completely. But it's quite different in the second year to watch them go away rather than get bigger as was the case in his first year. You didn't say what treatment you are getting, but I hope it is working. Carolyn
My almost 7 month old daughter also has a hemangioma on her left cheek, it is close to her eye, and it started too when she was about 3 weeks old. We also have been seeing Dr. Frieden at UCSF, who recommended just to watch it. The hemangioma is now in the latent phase. We will see if there is need for surgery in about 6 months to a year. I also live in Berkeley, and would like to talk to other parents whose children have Hemangiomas. arohena
My son saw Dr. Frieden several times. He now is nearly 3 and his hemangioma - once bright red, very raised and the size of a half- dollar coin (above his right eyebrow) is now barely noticeable. I, too, was like you, at first, research and constant dermatologist visits - even consultations w/a pediatric plastic surgeon.
In fact, I believe my research came up w/the physician you're seeing in LA. I guess I probably sound like a broken record to you (as other moms and my umpteen physician's sounded to me) - it will go away, not disappear.
I was, probably like you, obsessed w/his hemangioma. I thought it would be disfiguring and he would be picked on. Now he barely gets any comments and he only very recently started noticing it himself.
Today his hemangioma is 70% involuted, more than 50% skin color (vs. deep, deep red) and if I close my eyes and rub my fingers across it, I can't tell there's any skin disruption. Terry
Lightening a birthmark
July 2003
Can anyone recommend anything to lighten a brown birthmark? Thank you
I have a friend who had it removed by laser. I assume a dermatologist could give you information about all the latest techniques... Anon
In the latest issue of Parents Magazine there is an article about how dermatologists can really lighten up very disfiguring birthmarks so that they are much less noticible. I can't remember if they used laser or what. You can view the magazine at your local library and read that article. Sometimes you can find free copies at your pediatrician's office or other places where little kids frequent. Best Regards! Tiffany
15 month old son has a strawberry mark on his forehead
September 2001
My 15 month old son has a hemangioma or strawberry mark on his forehead. It's the size of a half-dollar coin. I am doing research on various options, including steroid injections and/or laser surgery. His current pediatric dermatologist is highly regarded, yet she's very conservative in her approach to treating his hemangioma. I am seeking surgeons who have had great success with removing hemangiomas on children with little or no scarring. If at all possible, I would like to consult with a surgeon who is affiliated with UCSF or Stanford, but am more interested in a surgeon who has specific experience with these kinds of cases. Thanks in advance for any leads. Terry
I don't have a recommendation of a dermatologist, but I thought I would mention that I had a similar, very red and obvious birthmark on my forehead at birth. My pediatrician didn't want to do surgery, but instead ran a piece of dry ice across it several times. Apparently it does something to the blood vessels. It has slowly been disappearing ever since, and now, as an adult (and for a long time--since back in gradeschool) is barely noticeable. Just a thought. Ann
My daughter has a Port Wine Stain and we had it treated while she was very young through Ilona Friedan at UCSF. She is highly regarded and conducts research as well as laser treatments for children. Strawberry birthmarks are by nature temporary, if I recall correctly, and will resolve themselves eventually. Permanent birthmarks such as Port Wine Stains will not. My daughter still has her birthmark, although it is less large and dark as it was at birth. Overall, I would say that parental anxiety over the impact of this condition upon of our children may outweigh the reality. Especially in the Bay Area where it seems society is a bit more enlightened about individual differences.
Our daughter is well adjusted, popular at school, and probably stronger than she would be otherwise. On the other hand I understand the desire to want to do all that you can to make life easier for your child, we had the same approach. However, the actual treatments can be quite stressful for the child, something we weren't prepared for really, and to this day we wonder whether they had a more negative impact on our child than the birthmark itself. The doctors insisted that we had to do this before there was any melanin build up so we went with the program. Since putting children under anesthesia is not recommended at younger ages, she was awake, strapped down and blindfolded during treatment. As you can imagine it was quite awful and absolutely frightening for her. I would be happy to discuss this in further detail with you, and talk about the social, medical and other issues that we experienced.
For several years I have been a patient of Dr Julie Billings, dermatologist, who works out of the Summit Medical Center buildings in Oakland. She's thorough, knowledgable, informative. Jill
I missed the posting for a red birthmark, I just saw the response. I highly recommend Dr. Iona Frieden at UCSF. She is a pediatric dermatologist. My daughter has a small strawberry hemangioma, which I was extremely worried about. The doctor relieved all of my fears and told us that 70% go away on their own by age 5, 90% by age 9. I do know a lot about these birthmarks feel free to e-mail me. Sharon