7week old baby possible PWS

[Gracies Mom]

My baby is 7 weeks old today. She is covered by Medicaid. She was seen by her Dr. at 2 weeks and he said he would have to just watch it. ( He wasn't certain it was PWS. We have another appt at 9 weeks old. I really want to get an experts opinion. She has it on her left side of her scalp, left eye lid. also has a couple of lighter color ones on her right side in her scalp. She has one on her neck and shoulder. The darker one is on her eye. These seem to be getting lighter in color. ( Not around eyelid though) It appears that there is good skin peeking through. Does that mean it might not be PWS?

I have also read where it is better to start treatment before 6 months. First of all, I want a good physician. But am having a hard time finding one that would accept medicaid and also one that would do treatment for an infant. Do you know if there is financial help for someone like my daughter? Any advice would so be appreciated!

[Talans Mommy]

First of all, congrats on your baby girl. I know that some birthmarks on the face do fade away on their own over time. The first thing I would do is ask her doctor for a referral to a Pediatric Dermatologist to confirm if it is a PWS or not. They will also run tests for anything else they feel could be a concern. Sorry, I don't know about the financing.

[lauren7844]

We recently went to Dr. Nelson in Irvine, CA for our daughter's PWS on her face. We had noticed that around 7 weeks of age her PWS looked lighter than it did when she was born. Dr. Nelson said that this is very typical for the birthmark to lighten around 2-3 months due to a sort of anemia the birthmark goes through as the mother's red blood cells are filtered out of the baby's system. The PWS will actually lighten around this time but once again darken to its original color. You probably do want to consult a pediatric dermatologist ASAP. Because my daughters PWS was on her face and near her eye we had to have her checked for glaucoma and also checked for Sturge Weber Syndrome, a neuro related condition. Not to alarm you but you might have your pediatrician refer you to a opthamologist and neurologist just to be sure. I think the odds are very rare, but its better to know than not know. I emailed Dr. Nelson from this site and he responded within a few hours about many questions I had. You might try contacting him to see what he recommends. I hope this helps and hopefully your daughters birthmark is one that fades and you won't have to worry about all this.