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Port-wine stain - Overview

Alternative Names

Nevus flammeus

Definition of Port-wine stain:

A port-wine stain is a birthmark in which swollen blood vessels create a reddish-purplish discoloration of the skin.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Port-wine stains occur in about 3 out of 1,000 people.

Port-wine stains rarely may be a sign of Sturge-Weber syndrome or Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome.

Port wine stain on a child's face

Sturge-Weber syndrome - legs

Reviewed last on: 4/15/2009
Jonathan Kantor, MD, North Florida Dermatology Associates, Jacksonville, FL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Morelli JG. Vascular Disorders. In: Kliegman RM, Behrman RE, Jenson HB, Stanton BF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th Ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007: chap 649.

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