Question
My child is 9 months old, and there is a large lump on their lips. It looks quite different from a normal baby, as it’s clearly visible that there are blood vessels inside the lump. When I took the baby to the hospital for a check-up for a lip hemangioma, the doctor held something near the baby’s mouth for about fifteen minutes. What was the doctor doing?
Answer
A hemangioma is a benign tumor or congenital vascular tissue malformation that originates from residual embryonic vascular cells. The most common type is seen at birth or soon after, with most being capillary hemangiomas and cavernous hemangiomas. The skin surface of capillary hemangiomas is usually bright red or purplish red, and most hemangiomas do not regress spontaneously. They tend to increase with age, so early treatment is recommended.