Birthmarks in babies

My girl had some small mild brown birthmarks on her thighs. Though not very obvious, but did cause me to worry a fair bit.

My boy doesn't have these birthmarks at all.

I knew of a friend from college who had a daughter with a huge "strawberry" birthmark on her face. They did mention that it may be psychologically damaging to their daughter as she grows up, so what they can do is to shower her with all their love and attention. 

Another friend's newborn had large patches of brown birthmarks on his face and neck. And though the patches did fade a little when the boy grew up but they never really went away. 

So as a concerned mum on the birthmarks on my girl, I did some checking up on birthmarks. 

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What are birthmarks?

Birthmarks are areas of discolored skin that are on a baby's body at birth or that show up within a few months after delivery. Over 80 percent of babies have some kind of birthmark. Some endure for life, while others fade away over time.

Most birthmarks fall into one of two categories: vascular or pigmented.

Vascular birthmarks are caused by blood vessels that have accumulated below the surface of the skin. They range in color from pink to red to bluish, depending on the depth of the blood vessels.

Pigmented birthmarks — usually brown, gray, bluish, or black — result from an abnormal development of pigment cells. 

What causes birthmarks? 

Birthmarks have no known cause – they are just a 'manufacturing accident'. They are certainly nothing to do with what the mother ate or did during pregnancy.

However, there was a study done that "Lack Of Oxygen Is Probable Cause Of Infant Birthmarks" (Read the report : Medical News Today)


Types of birthmarks

Birthmarks come in a wide range of shapes, sizes, and colors, and they can show up anywhere on the body. Some birthmarks are referred to as nevi ("nevus" is the singular).

Common name	Color	Shape	Locale	Frequency	Prognosis	Treatment
Stork Bite, Angel's Kiss	Pink.	Irregular and flat.	Neck, head or top-lip.	Nearly half of newborns have a stork bite (angel's kiss).	Most fade by the end of the first year. There are no known health problems.	None.
Mongolian Blue Spot,	Bluish, bruise-like.	Irregular and flat.	Lower back and bottom.	Most common in darker skinned people, especially noticeable in East Asian people.	May not appear until sometime after birth, but gradually fade. No health problems, but they have been mistaken for abuse bruises by over-zealous social workers or medical staff.	None.
Strawberry mark	Red.	Raised and lumpy.	Can appear anywhere on the body.	One in twenty births.	The mark usually appears between one and four weeks, it can then grow rapidly, before stopping and slowly fading. Sixty percent of marks have vanished by five years, and ninety percent have gone by age ten.	Surgery or laser treatment is not generally recommended, unless the mark is blocking vision or breathing, because of the risk of scarring.
Café au lait spot	Light brown, milk coffee color is the most common.	Oval.	Can appear anywhere on the body.	Having one or two spots is common.	There are no health problems associated with one or two spots, although three or more can be an indicator of*neurofibromatosis.They usually fade or get smaller as a child grows, although they may darken with sun exposure.	Cosmetic
Congenital melanocytic nevus (Moles)	Light brown (in fair skinned people) to almost black (in darker skinned people).	Irregular, small marks usually flat, large ones can be raised and lumpy.	Can appear anywhere on the body	About one in a hundred births.	Some, but not all, studies have suggested a cancer risk is associated with large marks. Some marks are associated with a build up of melanin in the spinal cord, a condition called neurocutaneous melanosis. Naevi close to the eye are associated with glaucoma. Large visible marks can have a psychological impact.	Surgical removal is an option, but will usually lead to scarring. The marks should be watched as sudden changes can be a sign of cancer.
Port-wine stain	Pale pink at birth, becoming darker with age to a deep wine red.	Irregular.	Often on the face	Three in one thousand births.	The mark does not fade. Marks around the eye are associated with glaucoma. There can be a psychological impact. Light port-wine stains might fade, but most endure and get bigger as the child grows. Sometimes port-wine stains can thicken and darken (the birthmark on former Russian president Mikhail Gorbachev's head is one example). They can also form cobblestones, or small lumps, on the surface of the skin over the course of decades.	Laser treatment is usually effective.

* Neurofibromatosis is a genetically-transmitted disease in which nerve cells (Schwann cells) grow tumors (neurofibromas) that may be harmless or may cause serious damage by compressing nerves and other tissues. The tumors may cause bumps under the skin, colored spots, skeletal problems, pressure on spinal nerve roots, and other neurological problems. The disease occurs in approximately one in every 3,000 children.


Neurofibromatosis is inherited through a dominant gene. That means that if a child gets one gene for neurofibromatosis from one parent, and a normal gene from the other parent, that child will have neurofibromatosis. Therefore, if only one parent has neurofibromatosis, his or her children have a 50% chance of developing the condition as well. Disease severity, however, can vary.


Do birthmarks require medical attention?


Most birthmarks are harmless, and many go away on their own in the first few years of life.

There are a few exceptions, though. Potential problems include:

• Port-wine stains near the eye and cheek are sometimes associated with vision problems like glaucoma, or with seizures and developmental delay. (This is known as Sturge-Weber syndrome.)

• Large hemangiomas, depending on where they're located, can interfere with eating, seeing, or breathing. Hemangiomas can sometimes grow internally, threatening the health of an organ. Others can be cosmetically disfiguring.

• Birthmarks on the lower spine may extend beneath the skin and affect the nerves and blood flow to the spinal cord.

• Groups of six or more café au lait spots may be a sign of a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF-1). Children with NF-1 usually have the spots at birth or by age 2, although the number may increase in childhood and occasionally later in life. About 50 percent of people with NF-1 also have learning disabilities.

• Certain especially large moles that are present at birth have an increased risk of eventually becoming cancerous.

• Some prominent or disfiguring birthmarks can become psychologically damaging to a child over time.


References:
Net Doctor, About Kids Health, BabyCenter, Wikipedia