Medical Questions » Skin Questions » Question No. 893
| Question: | Are there any dangers in having several birth marks? I have about 25, and my 2 year old son has about 13. A paediatrician commented that future children could have problems. I also have a couple of soft lumps under my skin. A second opinion would be appreciated. |
| Answer: | Generally speaking, provided your birth marks are not moles that may become skin cancers, there is no cause for concern about them.
What your paediatrician is probably concerned about is a condition called Von Recklinghausen' s disease of multiple neurofibromatosis. Besides having one of the longest names in any medical textbook, this disease has the characteristics of multiple light brown marks on the skin, soft fatty lumps under the skin and in a small number of cases, nerves may be damaged.
The disease passes from one generation to the next, but has a very variable result. Some patients merely have a couple of brown spots that never concern them, while others may be severely disfigured and disabled by the lumps under the skin, nerve weakness and large brown patches.
There is no treatment other than plastic surgery for any particularly bad lumps and patches. There is also no way in which you can determine whether a future child will have the condition, or how badly affected that child will be. Your son should not marry someone who also has this condition in her background. Further advice can be sought from your paediatrician or a geneticist.
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