New to the site. 17 month old hemangioma on nose.

rgbosworth · #1 08-17-2008, 05:42 PM

I have a 17 month old son who has a birthmark (both deep and superficial) on the nose. The ped derm said "wait it out, it will go away, no treatment".

I gather that 10% of the birthmarks are NOT resolved by 9 years of age. And also the "complication" or scarring rate from laser treatment is about 10% too. No one seems to acknowledge that these are equivalent. If so, doesnt it make sense to go ahead with treatment and eliminate ~4-6! years with a birthmark?

I would appreciate both parents' feedback and doctors' as well, about the correctness of what I gathered from carefully reading published study results in current medical articles from pudmed.

Thanks
rgb

AubrieB · #2 08-18-2008, 12:02 AM

Hi and welcome to the site. You will find a wealth of knowledge here and tons of people willing to help you.

I know that the "wait and see" approach can be rather frustrating. I had 3 doctors tell me to "wait and see" about my sons hemangiomas. My husband and I decided that we wanted to take a more aggressive approach and got in contact with Dr Buckmiller at Arkansas CHildren's Hospital. My little on is 9 months old and will have 3 of his 8 removed on Oct 21st. You can see 2 in the photo that I posted - the deep one on his upper lip and the compund one on his nose. She assured us that there would be very little scarring.
My son is sleeping now, but when he wakes, I will try to snap a few of the ones on his stomach with the before pics, too so you can see the changs after his 2 laser treatments.

cherie · #3 08-18-2008, 12:25 AM

I am sorry for what you are going through and I understand. My daughter is 23 months old and has had, since birth, a, what they think is a, hemangioma that is both superficial and deep. It is being fed by the femoral artery. We have been told by 2 pediatricians and 2 VAC's (including Dr. Buckmiller), that they are not sure what it is and that we should wait and see. It is extremely frustrating not knowing what it is and what to expect from it. To top it all off, the "thing" hurts and swells with activity. Hopefully someone will help you with your baby's hemangioma. Just keep going to different doctors. There are VAC's in many states. That's what I am doing. Eventually, someone will know what it is and what to do.
Cherie

abirk · #4 08-18-2008, 04:50 PM

Hi,
My daughter has a superficial h on her nose. It stopped growing around five months and we started laser treatment when she was six months. She is now eleven months old and have had five laser treatments without any scarring/ulcers. It has shrunk a little and have gone from a bright red to soft pink color. It has been a very good experience for us. The intensity of the laser was low when she had her first laser and had been increased for each treatment. I think that approach has really been the key for her not having any problems. With her fourth and fifth laser treatment we saw the best results.

April

rgbosworth · #5 08-19-2008, 09:48 PM

Thanks for your messages. I've been so confused by the mixed messages from doctors. They say that laser works, and yet they say they dont want to treat.

I included a photo too (I didnt say so in my original message) of Asher's birthmark. I am going yet again to another ped dermatologist in 3 weeks.

it seems like the key component in suggest of laser is its depth, because the laser only penetrates a short depth. But does that just mean that it treats the top red part and not the deep component?

Can anyone tell me if the laser is painful and if pain med is needed?

rgbosworth · #6 08-19-2008, 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AubrieB

Hi and welcome to the site. You will find a wealth of knowledge here and tons of people willing to help you.

I know that the "wait and see" approach can be rather frustrating. I had 3 doctors tell me to "wait and see" about my sons hemangiomas. My husband and I decided that we wanted to take a more aggressive approach and got in contact with Dr Buckmiller at Arkansas CHildren's Hospital. My little on is 9 months old and will have 3 of his 8 removed on Oct 21st. You can see 2 in the photo that I posted - the deep one on his upper lip and the compund one on his nose. She assured us that there would be very little scarring.
My son is sleeping now, but when he wakes, I will try to snap a few of the ones on his stomach with the before pics, too so you can see the changs after his 2 laser treatments.

Your son is so beautiful! Thanks for sharing!

Rachel06 · #7 08-21-2008, 04:16 AM

Hi and welcome to the group. My daughter, Rachel, went through 10 laser surgeries with Dr. Waner in New York. There is a ton of info out there, and all confusing depending on who you talk to. We learned, right away, that "text book" was not a good thing - as there have been advances on the treatment. Anyway, I just wanted to say, when I opened your son's photo, I just could not get over what a handsome boy he is!! Anyway, you sound confused and I am open to chat if you like and share our experiences and any info I can help you with. Feel free to e-mail me privately at sherrirfoster@sbcglobal.net. Best of luck to you!!