does anyone's baby have mongolian spots? - Page 3

[Proudmomoftwinsplusone]

One of my sons had it right above his bum until age....hmm...2 or 3? He is 3/4 Mediterranean descent.

[Missy]

Originally Posted by ShwarmaQueen

Then what is it?

A mole? It's not a mongolian spot. It's raised and hairy. Monogolian spots are flat. Like I said in an earlier post, a raised, hairy spot at the base of the spine, especially in combination with a sacral dimple, can be a sign of spina bifida.

[USAmma]

She's talking about two different things-- the Mongolian Spot, and the sacral dimple.

BTW my kids had both of these and the dimple is called spina bifida occulta, usually harmless but should be watched for signs of problems such as incontinence. My dd1 had the spotting darker and it went away at around 1.5-2 years old. She still has a dark line running from her navel to her pubic bone though. My MIL said that some Indian kids have that. My dd2 is lighter and her spots were faint and went away within months, and no line at her navel either.

Dd1's looked like this:
http://www.myhealth.gov.my/myhealth/..._blue_spot.jpg



Here's a sacral dimple
http://www.adhb.govt.nz/newborn/teac...ralDimple1.JPG

My dd's dimples are lower down and hard to see. This pic above is more obvious.


Edited to add another photo closer to my dds
http://www.ohiohealth.com/mayo/image...craldimple.jpg

[Missy]

Originally Posted by USAmma

She's talking about two different things-- the Mongolian Spot, and the sacral dimple.

]

USAmma--I know she is talking about two different things, but neither is a Mongolian spot. There is no Mongolian spot, at least not in the OP. The spot she's talking about is raised and hairy. Mongolian spots are flat. Like a PP said, they are simply pigmentation. What she is describing is also frequently found in cases of spina bifida, just like the sacral dimple. I'm actually really surprised that only one other person pointed out that what meowee was describing isn't a Mongolian spot.

Even though both are usually harmless, meowee does need to understand that it's not a Mongolian spot and that there are possible health implications to both of what she described.

[Calidris]

Originally Posted by meowee

Ooooh that was always a huge fear of mine! DS's spots really did look like bruises, I never let anyone see his back. My baby's spot is a little raised and fuzzy so obviously not a bruise.

DD had quite a few, (including on both ankles, where you might hold her legs to raise them for diaper changes, so they really looked like bruises!). They are mostly faded by now (4.5).

But I don't think what you are describing is a Mongolian spot. I have seen raised hairy spots on babies, but I don't think they fade, at least not to the extent that mongolian spots do.

Also birthmarks are there from birth, moles come up later.

eta, I see Missy addressed it already

Originally Posted by IsaFrench

is it a mongolian spot if it is NOT at the base of the spine ?
my youngest has a spot at the base of the shin and my second child has one on the inside of his thigh ....

Mongolian spots can be pretty much anywhere, along the back, the arms or legs.

[AlpineMama]

DS had a few light ones. He is Hispanic and Hungarian. I just learned in the course of this discussion, from Wikipedia, that up to 20% of Hungarians actually have Mongolian spots too! How odd, of all things, I've never heard that, but it makes sense because we have Asian blood in us, though from way way back.

FWIW I have a sacral dimple too and I never knew what it was called! When I was in sixth grade we had a teacher tell us that some people are born with tails and they are chopped off by the doctors right then and there. For half of my life I was convinced that I really had a scar from being born with a tail. But now I know what it really is. Too funny.

[HotJabanero]

I really don't belong here but this thread caught my attention. In my family history there was a hush hush story that a few generations back someone had a fling with an AA man. The baby that resulted would have had to been very light skined because today we have no idea where in the family line this would have occured. Anyway my point is that I and my husband are extremely light skinned on the red head spectrum and my oldest had a mongolian mark. I have a relative that had it on her son too so those genes hung on for a few generations.

My ped was very concerned when we took him in after the homebirth and that it must be a bruise because neither of us had the heritage he expected with it. He even had us come in a few days later and yep it was a mongolian mark. I was very careful about who saw him and what not because it looked like someone had kicked him hard at the top of his crack. It was very startling agains his very very fair skin. I even took a picture of it as proof. I am assuming that the story in my ancestry is true because of this but who knows. Once we knew what it was I thought it was kinda funny cause some of my aunts where very deffensive that the story could not be true.

[SeekingSerenity]

Originally Posted by Calidris

Mongolian spots can be pretty much anywhere, along the back, the arms or legs.

My DS had the large one across the lower back, but he also had a small one on his left arm, just below the elbow. I never questioned what it was, and thought it was cute. Since I am of Irish-American descent and very light-skinned, and my first husband was blond-haired and blue-eyed (hence the first three kids were also pale and blue-eyed), I was completely thrilled to have the darker-complected children by my second husband (who's Hispanic). I wasn't surprised to see the Mongolian spots.

I never actually paid any attention to DS's sacral dimple, as no one explained what it was, but he does have one. Oddly enough, someone mentioned incontinence. And DS still has almost daily issues with not being able to get to the bathroom on time. I attributed it to being almost 6, very hyper and just not taking the time to stop playing and go. Who knows? It doesn't seem to be much of a problem right now. I just remind him more to take care of his business.

[ShwarmaQueen]

Originally Posted by HotJabanero

In my family history there was a hush hush story that a few generations back someone had a fling with an AA man. The baby that resulted would have had to been very light skined because today we have no idea where in the family line this would have occured.

My mother grew up in East Texas and she told me similar stories. She said that back in the day, when a white mother gave birth to a baby who had a Mongolian mark people always assumed the father was an AA. She said plenty of marriages even broke up over them.

[IsaFrench]

Thank you CALIDRIS for answering my question !

I'm caucasian, so is my DH but then even in Europe we learn in our history books that such and such tribes invaded from the East hundreds and hundreds of years back, so who can tell NOW who slept with whom at that time .... there are bound to be inter-racial children whom no one can trace back now ...

[Missy]

Originally Posted by IsaFrench

Thank you CALIDRIS for answering my question !

...

??? I'm sorry? You didn't like my answer?

[SiValleySteph]

Both my son's have had mongolian spots. My youngest has one on his ankle which looks extremely like a bruise. Everytime I see it, I do a double take. The ped actually pointed it out to me.

Also, ITA that raised and hairy is not a mongolian spot.

[tbone]

Ds1 has mongolian spots. They were much more visible at birth, but have faded a bit (he's now 4 yrs). He has 3 of them all around his waistline.

[applejuice]

Originally Posted by honeybunmom

ETA: My dd is Puerto Rican and AA. We also had her spots recorded in her medical records by our pedi to avoid any issues around an accusation of abuse.

My youngest had them on his thighs and I was accused of abuse in the ER when he was a year old.

We are both white, afaik...

[Marsupialmom]

I am going to say 2 things....

My neice and nephew had/has magolinian spots. Get them documented. It only takes one stupid person to make your life hell.

The second thing I am not comfortable with the comment about the dimple and hair. My dd has spina bifidia occult. The dimple and hair you mention could be actually a very mild spina bifidia case. It can be a major issue if it goes undiagnosed.

[applejuice]

My DD and sister have spinal bifida occulta and it was diagnosed when they were adults.

[AKA_PI]

My son is 4 months old and both his father and I are AA (with other nationalities from further down the line) and he has mongolian spots.

[EdnaMarie]

Originally Posted by IsaFrench

is it a mongolian spot if it is NOT at the base of the spine ?
my youngest has a spot at the base of the shin and my second child has one on the inside of his thigh ....

Those are birthmarks, not Mongolian spots.

[bigeyes]

Originally Posted by EdnaMarie

Those are birthmarks, not Mongolian spots.

Wherever they're located they're Mongolian spots. Location isn't important. The bruise-like appearance is what makes them Mongolian spots.

[Lisa85]

is it a mongolian spot if it is NOT at the base of the spine ?
my youngest has a spot at the base of the shin and my second child has one on the inside of his thigh ....

No, location doesn't matter. Dd2 had one small one on her hand and also a slightly larger darker one on her hiney. Dd1 only has one at the base of spine, spreading onto one cheek.


From Wikipedia - note, there's no mention of the importance of location

Mongolian blue spot

Main article: Mongolian spot

Mongolian spot visible on six-month-old Taiwanese baby girl

A Mongolian blue spot is a benign flat congenital birthmark with wavy borders and irregular shape, most common among East Asians and Turks, and named after Mongolians. It is also extremely prevalent among East Africans and Native Americans.[4][5] Authentic mongolian blue spots do not disappear before puberty and lasts well into adulthood. The most common color is blue, although they can be blue-gray, blue-black or even deep brown.

The Mongolian spot is a congenital developmental condition exclusively involving the skin. The blue colour is caused by melanocytes, melanin-containing cells, that are deep under the skin. [5] Usually, as multiple spots or one large patch, it covers one or more of the lumbosacral area (lower back), the buttocks, flanks, and shoulders.[5] It results from the entrapment of melanocytes in the dermis during their migration from the neural crest to the epidermis during embryonic development.[5]

Among those who are not aware of the background of the Mongolian spots, it may sometimes be mistaken for a bruise indicative of child abuse.[6]

FWIW, MIL claims dh and his two siblings had one when they were babies. All are 100% Korean (i'm white, so our hapa babies are 1/2 korean). Dh no longer has one. But having said all that, MIL is not a reliable source of information on these kinds of things.