Recovery & Support for Birthmarks in Children

Dermatologists and plastic surgeons at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone offer follow-up care and support for children with all types of birthmarks. Our doctors partner with parents to ensure that children recover fully. They remain in contact throughout a child’s life, should treatment be required again.

We also offer child and family support services and resilience programs, which are provided by Sala Institute for Child and Family Centered Care.

Continued Monitoring

Your child’s doctor recommends follow-up appointments depending on the size, type, and location of the child’s birthmark and whether it was treated. These visits allow doctors to monitor the birthmark as the child grows and recommend intervention if needed.

If a child has a pigmented birthmark, such as a congenital nevus, that was not removed, parents should monitor the birthmark for any changes. The association between birthmarks and skin cancer is very low. However, a doctor should evaluate the birthmark right away if it exhibits an unexpected change in size, shape, color, or texture, or if it becomes an open sore or begins to bleed. Our dermatologists can determine whether a birthmark requires treatment.

If your child is prescribed medication to treat a birthmark, our dermatologists schedule regular follow-up visits to monitor the birthmark as it shrinks and fades. These appointments help our doctors to determine the appropriate length of treatment.

After treatment has ended, doctors recommend annual check-ups throughout childhood to ensure the birthmark does not return. This is rare, but dermatologists start treatment immediately if it does return.