Nevi is the fancy, medical term for “moles”. Most of us have at least a few moles on our skin. Chances are that no two of yours look the same, because nevi come in a variety of sizes, shapes, colors and textures!
Appearance and Characteristics of Speckled Nevi
One type of birthmark is a “speckled nevi”. These look like large, flat light brown patches with lots of darker, freckles within them. Sometimes they may fade during the winter and get darker in the summer or with sun exposure. If you run your fingers over the surface, they may feel a bit like sandpaper. If you’ve got one and you wish you didn’t, class IV medical lasers may be able to help.
Laser Treatment for Speckled Nevi
Laser treatments for brown birthmarks isn’t always a sure thing. While many fade significantly, others don’t. We tell this to our patients up front and set their expectation for improvement in appearance and not necessarily total Removal. At Celibre Medical, we’ve had good success treating these types of birthmarks (and others) with q-switched laser technology. Q-switch lasers are safe for most skin types (colors) and they will often fade the brown pigment of speckled nevi birthmarks, while leaving the dark freckles behind.
While laser treatment of these birthmark can be challenging, we’ve found that by thoroughly discussing the ins and outs of treatment and results up front with our patients, they are very happy with their results.
