Brown spot on lip after having asian soup

Everytime I have miso, hot and sour, or egg drop soup, I develop a brown spot on my upper lip. I think each time it is in the exact same place. It causes no discomfort and disappears after a few days.

I would like to understand the cause of this problem, and if there is a way to prevent it happening(other than avoiding these soups).

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

Without examination confirmation of a diagnosis is tough but it can be contact dermatitis,oral melanotic macule or lentigo simplex.

Since you are having it after certain foods,so chances of contact dermatitis are more.It a skin reaction resulting from exposure to allergens (allergic contact dermatitis) or irritants (irritant contact dermatitis).

Prevention is the main treatment.Other than that you can apply cold compresses on the spot when it appears,take oral antihistaminics like benadryl or Claritin and apply mild corticosteroid cream on it.If the lesion remains resistant to all these,then the other possibilities have to be probed.Pls conault a dermatologist in that case.

Hope it helps.Take care and pls do keep us posted if you have any additional queries.