How do I get rid of a red birthmark on my face?

Laser therapy

  1. Laser therapy can help lighten red birthmarks like port wine birthmarks.
  2. The laser light converts to heat, which shrinks or eliminates blood vessels, making birthmarks less noticeable.
  3. Laser therapy is most effective when used from infancy, but it can also be used on children and adults.

Why do I have a red birthmark on my face?

Red birthmarks are colored, vascular (blood vessel) skin markings that develop before or shortly after birth. Red birthmarks are caused by an overgrowth of blood vessels.

How long do red birthmarks last?

They increase in size rapidly for the first 6 months but will eventually shrink and usually disappear by around 4 or 5 years of age.

What is a red birthmark on the face called?

Strawberry hemangiomas (also called strawberry mark, nevus vascularis, capillary hemangioma, hemangioma simplex) may appear anywhere on the body, but are most common on the face, scalp, back, or chest. They consist of small, closely packed blood vessels.

Will red birthmarks go away?

Nevus simplex birthmarks usually will go away on their own by the time your baby is a toddler. Do not be alarmed if the birthmark gets darker when your baby becomes more emotional or active—this is normal. Most nevus simples are totally harmless and do not need treatment.

Can red birthmarks be cancerous?

Different types of birthmarks are made up of different types of cells. Most birthmarks, such as the common port wine stains and strawberry marks, carry no risk of developing into a cancer. But a very rare type, called a giant congenital melanocytic naevus, can develop into a melanoma if it is larger than 20cm.

How long do strawberry birthmarks last?

The tumor often grows for the first year and then shrinks, usually without treatment. About 10% disappear by the child’s first birthday. Of the rest, 90% of hemangiomas fade away by a child’s 10th birthday.

Can melanoma look like a birthmark?

It can look like a: Changing mole. Spot that looks like a new mole, freckle, or age spot, but it looks different from the others on your skin. Spot that has a jagged border, more than one color, and is growing.

When should you worry about a birthmark?

These are coffee-coloured pigmented patches on the skin that are generally no cause for concern, although if your child develops more than six spots, or they measure more than 5cm in diameter, you should see your doctor.

What causes strawberry hemangioma in adults?

They’re not the result of anything a person does during pregnancy. It’s a myth that foods or stress cause any type of birthmark. Strawberry hemangiomas form when blood vessels and cells close to the skin don’t develop as they should. Instead, the vessels clump together into a noncancerous mass or tumor.