Some babies are born with birthmarks, also called “salmon patches”, because of their reddish or pinkish colour. Parents may worry about these spots on their babies' skin, but they are common and may vanish on their own after a while. If you want to learn more about this topic, read the next article, where we talk about different things about salmon patches in newborns. First, let's talk about what a salmon patch is.
What's a Salmon Patch?
Salmon patches on a baby's skin are swollen blood vessels or capillaries. They are also called Nevus Simplex, but birthmarks are a simpler way to say what they are. These flat pink or red spots don't have clear edges and can happen to babies with dark or light skin. If a salmon patch is on the face, it's called an “angel’s kiss,” and if it's on the back of the neck, it's called a “stork bite.” It is also called Nevus simplex and Naevus flammeus simplex.
Salmon Patch signs and symptoms
Salmon runs are easy to find because of how they look. Here are some signs that you might have a salmon mark or salmon patch rash:
- You can see them on your face or at the back of your neck.
- They have a hint of pink or red.
- They are marks on the skin that are flat.
- The edges of these patches are not clear.
- These patches don't make your skin itch or hurt.
Diagnosis of Salmon Patch
A salmon patch is easy for your doctor to spot just by looking at it. But besides how it looks, the mark's location helps your doctor figure out what's wrong. A test or biopsy may not be needed to confirm the diagnosis unless your doctor thinks otherwise.
Other ways to find out what's wrong with the skin may be:
- A visual exam by the doctor, which in many cases can help figure out what's wrong.
- Dermoscopy: A dermatologist looks at the skin with a special magnifying lens to make a diagnosis.
- Wood's lamp exam: This is a way for a doctor or nurse to look at the skin with the help of ultraviolet light. It can be done to see how the colour of the skin changes.
- If needed, skin biopsies can be done to exclude other health problems.
Indications of many medical conditions can be the same. Your doctor may do more trials to determine other possible health problems and develop an ultimate diagnosis.
How to Treat Salmon Patches?
A salmon patch doesn't need to be treated with anything. It is best to let the patch go away on its own, which usually takes a year or two. Angel kisses and stork marks are safe for babies and don't cause any health problems. But if the birthmark is still there after a few years, you might think about getting rid of it with a laser. You can cover angel kisses with makeup if you don't want to get laser surgery. Stork marks, on the other hand, are usually hidden by hair.
Conclusion
Salmon Patch is a reddish birthmark caused by the deformity of tiny blood vessels. It is one of the common forms of capillary vascular malformation. It's a flat, salmon-coloured patch on newborns. Salmon patches are common at birth but are benign and usually last a year. Most benign growths occur on the face and neck.
These harmless growths can happen anywhere on the body, but most of the time, they appear on the neck or face. They don't have any symptoms or problems that are important. Most of the time, Salmon Patches don't need to be treated. But, if required, laser therapy is sometimes used to treat them for cosmetic reasons.
