Strawberry Patch

I have a 4 month old who has a strawberry patch on her face below her left eye. There has been a strawberry patch there since she was born also. My question is this. At the bottom of this patch there is a hard spot. Sometimes it feels warm to the touch. It does not seem to cause any pain to her. My family physician today called it a tumor and wants to send us to a Peds Dermatologist. Can you give any advise on where to research this topic? We do have an appointment and we will keep it but wanting to know a little more so we can ask better informed questions when we go.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
What your daughter seems to be having is called strawberry hemangioma. It is a raised bright red spot, often small, usually soft and compressible characterized with well-defined borders. They consist of an abnormally dense group of widened (dilated) blood vessels.

Strawberry hemangioma are often not treated. When they are allowed to disappear on their own, the result is usually normal-appearing skin. In some cases, a laser may be used to eradicate the small vessels.I agree with your doctor that a pediatrics dermatologist’s opinion will be the best.

I hope it helps. Take care and pls do keep me posted on how you are doing or in case you have any additional doubts. Kind regards.