Infant Skin Discoloration

Once all the fingers and toes are accounted for, parents sometimes find some skin discolorations on their baby. According to the article "How Your Newborn Looks," published on the American Academy of Pediatrics website, most of these marks "will fade or resolve on their own without treatment." Parents can know what to expect based on what the discolorations look like.

Salmon patches

• Red marks on the head and face typically fade in time.

  Pink or red areas typically found on the back of the neck, or on the face around the eyes or nose, are commonly referred to as salmon patches. These are very common and will fade before the first birthday. Sometimes these are referred to as a "stork bite" or "angel kiss."

Strawberry hemangiomas

• Most skin discolorations clear up by themselves.

  Blood vessels that widen under the skin can cause red marks known as strawberry hemangiomas. Although these are fairly light at birth, parents may be concerned as they become redder and more prominent in the first couple of months. These red spots are nothing to worry about but will take longer to disappear. Some children are 6 years old before these clear up entirely.

Port-wine stains

• Port-wine stains are birthmarks that usually do not go away.

  Named for their purplish-red appearance, port-wine stains are another common skin discoloration parents may find on their babies. These marks do not clear up on their own but can be removed by a physician if they are bothersome to a parent, or to the child when he is older.

Mongolian spots

• Mongolian spots are common and no cause for concern.

  Mongolian spots are extremely common in black, Native American and Asian babies. They often show up on the buttocks or back of a baby and are bluish-green. Although these spots can sometimes be quite large, they disappear on their own within the first couple of years of a child's life.

Cafe-au-Lait spots

• Parents should talk to a doctor about worrisome skin issues.

  Literally translated, cafe-au-Lait means coffee with milk, and it describes the color of certain skin markings. These discolorations may turn darker as a child ages and are typically not a concern unless there are six or more spots, which could indicate other medical issues.

Basic moles

• Newborn skin problems are common.

  The technical name for common moles is pigmented nevi. Typically these do not go away and may get darker as the baby grows. Extremely large moles or moles with unique characteristics may be checked by a doctor, but in most cases these are normal.