Birthmarks are colored skin spots that either are present at birth or develop shortly after birth. Birthmarks can be many different colors, including brown, tan, black, pale blue, pink, white, red, or purple. Some birthmarks are only colorations of the surface of the skin; others are raised above the surface of the skin or extend into the tissues under the skin.

What Causes Birthmarks?

The cause of most birthmarks is unknown. Most birthmarks are not inherited. Many folk tales and myths exist about the causes of birthmarks, but none of these stories have been proven to explain the true causes of birthmarks.

Do Birthmarks Need to Be Treated?

Most birthmarks need no treatment. They often fade as a child grows older. However, some birthmarks may need treatment because of their location. For example, a raised birthmark near a child's eye may interfere with his or her ability to see. In rare cases, birthmarks are associated with other conditions, such as growths on the liver, lungs, stomach, or intestines.

Types of Birthmarks

There are two main categories of birthmarks -- red birthmarks and pigmented birthmarks. Red birthmarks are colored, vascular (having to do with blood vessels) skin markings that develop before or shortly after birth. Pigmented birthmarks are skin markings that are present at birth. The marks may range from brown or black to bluish or blue-gray in color.

Learn more about pigmented birthmarks.

Red Birthmarks

The hemangioma is a common type of vascular birthmark. It is usually painless and harmless and its cause is not known. Color from the birthmark comes from the extensive development of blood vessels at the site.

Types of hemangiomas include:

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. They may be absent at birth, and develop at several weeks. They usually grow rapidly, remain a fixed size, and then subside. In most cases, strawberry hemangiomas disappear by the time a child is 9 years old. Some slight discoloration or puckering of the skin may remain at the site of the hemangioma.
Cavernous hemangiomas (also called angioma cavernosum or cavernoma) are similar to strawberry hemangiomas but are more deeply situated. They may appear as a red-blue spongy mass of tissue filled with blood. Some of these lesions may disappear on their own -- usually as a child approaches school age.
Port-wine stains are flat purple-to-red birthmarks made of dilated blood capillaries. These birthmarks occur most often on the face and may vary in size. Port-wine stains often are permanent (unless treated).
Salmon patches (also called stork bites) appear on 30%-50% of newborn babies. These marks are small blood vessels (capillaries) that are visible through the skin. They are most common on the forehead, eyelids, upper lip, between the eyebrows, and the back of the neck. Often, these marks fade as the infant grows.