Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Are you familiar with these? Would you recognize on sight it's not a bruise? Brought to you by a mom with a child with a large Mongolian spot and someone not knowing it was a birthmark. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannanlee Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Yes, I am very familiar with them. I had them and all 3 of my children had/have them. My youngest even has one on the back of her head. They are fairly common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Are you familiar with these? Would you recognize on sight it's not a bruise?Brought to you by a mom with a child with a large Mongolian spot and someone not knowing it was a birthmark. :glare: I would now, but I wouldn't have known before I had children. One of mine had one on his backside, very blue. It is faded now. I can see how someone might have thought it was a bruise, noone but us and the doctor ever saw it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfamilygal Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Of course, but I'm a nurse. My step-mom (children's pastor) wanted to call CPS on a family because their baby had a large one. I reeducated her :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I would know. One of my dc's has one, but no one else in the family as far as I know. If I hadn't lived in Japan, where nearly all babies have them, I wouldn't have known what they were. And if dd had been born in Japan, dh may have wondered where it came from.... I have heard of a case where a mongolian spot was mistaken for a bruise and, thus, sign of abuse. At each well-check our pediatricians have noted the mongolian spot and put it in her records. It was without my request but I was grateful for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Well, I had two babies with HUGE ones. The doctor showed me how they were different so that helped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Yep I had one and all my kids had them when they were born. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 I wonder how closely this poll follows common knowledge. I'm glad to see the hive is up on this, at least! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyCrazyMama Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Never heard the term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Never heard the term. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_spot here you go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 My step-mom (children's pastor) wanted to call CPS on a family because their baby had a large one. I reeducated her :) These usually occur on Hispanic and African-American babies and I've found that a lot of white people are clueless about them. My dh is Hispanic and 2 of my babies have had these, so I had our pediatrician make note of it on their charts at their newborn appointments, just in case of situations like you described. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabelen Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I votes yes, but I was not familiar with them before children. My oldest had one as a baby, my second did not, both are biracial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 DD5 had one that looked like full-size-finger-shaped bruises as a baby and another that was large but more round in shape. It looked just like someone had slapped her or grabbed her very hard. I specifically showed the case worker, daycare center and her doctor and asked them to note it in her chart when she was little. Incidentally, my sister believes in reincarnation/past lives. She believes that birthmarks are from severe trauma left over from previous lives, and are often indicative of how the person died. She believes that dd5 was killed at the hand of another person in her previous life. :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennynd Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I thought they usually on Asians?? My sisters boys had them, and people thought my sister beat the kids up. I am Asian but my kids are mix and none of them have it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrn Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I am familiar with them, but only since having kids. I know a daycare worker that reported abuse on a child that had them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Yes, but not until I had kids. My daughter's ran the length of her back and had a mottled appearance. It totally looked like she had been smacked with an open hand repeatedly. At our doctor's suggestion, we had photos kept with us and digitally dated, as well as in her medical file, in case there was ever a question. My son had one just above his bum and one on his arm, that people asked, "where did you get that bruise?" more than once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Incidentally, my sister believes in reincarnation/past lives. She believes that birthmarks are from severe trauma left over from previous lives, and are often indicative of how the person died. She believes that dd5 was killed at the hand of another person in her previous life. :001_huh: :001_huh::001_huh: Wow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 (edited) I thought they usually on Asians??My sisters boys had them, and people thought my sister beat the kids up. I am Asian but my kids are mix and none of them have it. If I remember right, they are most common on people with darker skin tones like Asians, Polynesians, Native Americans, Africans.... I think anyone can have them they are just more common within certain groups. Edited June 14, 2012 by Tap, tap, tap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 People are stupid and need to learn to keep their mouths shut. From the mom of a dd with a facial port wine stain who has been asked how she burned/scraped/bruised/hurt herself. We don't get that many truly hurtful comments, but have received enough that I have stories to tell. I voted yes, but because of all my research, I don't know how common I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 As a former daycare worker in an infant/toddler room, I can also say that plenty of children of middle-eastern descent have them, too. They are quite bruise-like in appearance, and I can see why they would cause alarm if someone did not know what they were. We were told that if they weren't documented in a child's file that we must report all 'suspicious' marks - (and yes, there were several that turned out to be harmless - but IMO it's better to cause a little embarrassment over a birthmark, than to let an infant that actually was being abused fall through the cracks.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeW88 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Yes, but it's part of my job. LOL And, since I'm Italian, two of my kiddos have had them. The one with the rosy English skin did not. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 These usually occur on Hispanic and African-American babies and I've found that a lot of white people are clueless about them. My dh is Hispanic and 2 of my babies have had these, so I had our pediatrician make note of it on their charts at their newborn appointments, just in case of situations like you described. I thought they usually on Asians??My sisters boys had them, and people thought my sister beat the kids up. I am Asian but my kids are mix and none of them have it. They're also very common on Native American people, and 5%+ of caucasian babies have them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 As a former daycare worker in an infant/toddler room, I can also say that plenty of children of middle-eastern descent have them, too. They are quite bruise-like in appearance, and I can see why they would cause alarm if someone did not know what they were. We were told that if they weren't documented in a child's file that we must report all 'suspicious' marks - (and yes, there were several that turned out to be harmless - but IMO it's better to cause a little embarrassment over a birthmark, than to let an infant that actually was being abused fall through the cracks.) Ok, but I'm asking if a Mongolian spot is recognizable vs something you'd see and find suspicious. I mean, a stork bite is also a birth mark, but I don't know anyone who has ever had an issue over it, you know?:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 My daughter is Chinese and she had a few at birth. By her third or fourth year they had mostly faded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Yes, but it's part of my job. LOL And, since I'm Italian, two of my kiddos have had them. The one with the rosy English skin did not. :D I'm so glad that the nurses who have chimed in are so familiar with them! :thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaffodilDreams Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I know only because my dd had two of them. We did carry around a note from the ped explaining what they were for awhile, and she had a note on file with her preschool. They've since faded almost completely. If it hadn't been for our own experience, I could see myself easily mistaking them as bruises on another child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I had to double check that I was thinking of the right thing, but I did recognize the term for what it was. I wouldn't have known if a childhood friend of a sibling hadn't had many very visible ones until he was much older. I wouldn't have confused those with bruises, but I could see being unsure about some in photos that google pulled up. I had people ask if a reddish/pinkish birthmark was a recent injury all the way up to high school, for what it's worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyCrazyMama Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_spot here you go! Now I can say I had never heard the term and my youngest has a small birthmark that looks like a bluish bruise.:001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I know what they are -- but it's quite possible that the *first* thing I would think when seeing them is "bruise". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Ok, but I'm asking if a Mongolian spot is recognizable vs something you'd see and find suspicious. I mean, a stork bite is also a birth mark, but I don't know anyone who has ever had an issue over it, you know?:001_smile: To people who know what they are and have seen them before - I think they would be recognizable - but I think that for someone who was unfamiliar with them, they would probably automatically think 'bruises.' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyD Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Incidentally, my sister believes in reincarnation/past lives. She believes that birthmarks are from severe trauma left over from previous lives, and are often indicative of how the person died. She believes that dd5 was killed at the hand of another person in her previous life. :001_huh: Whoa, Nelly. There's a conversation stopper right there. I first saw this on a Japanese friend's toddler many years ago and thought it was a bruise until she explained it to me. Only one of my three half-Asian children had one, though, and it was more like a shadow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Incidentally, my sister believes in reincarnation/past lives. She believes that birthmarks are from severe trauma left over from previous lives, and are often indicative of how the person died. She believes that dd5 was killed at the hand of another person in her previous life. :001_huh: :001_huh:Yikes! I hope she doesn't share that comment with your dd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeacefulChaos Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I am familiar with the term and with what they are - however, I haven't seen any since I was a teenager (knew one little boy that my aunt babysat who had them) and can't be sure I would know them on sight now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalicoKat Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Our children have them. We actually got a letter from our doctor to carry with us documenting that they were indeed birthmarks not bruises so that we might avoid any unnecessary attention. Our kids are adopted and it was the caseworker who recommended it. My MIL was the only person to ever mention it. She got to read the letter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Year Round Mom Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 My mom and dad adopted me and flew to Korea to pick me up. I was 2 months or so old. When they landed stateside, Mom freaked out when she changed my diaper because of my Mongolian spot. She thought she had bruised me by holding me the whole flight! All my kids have one to some degree. DS had spots on his ankle up to his shoulder. I thought the security anklet he had in the hospital at birth had given him a bruise! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 My middle dd had one. I knew what they were before I had kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom25girls Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Two of my three Asian children had large Mongolian spots. I had the doctor document it on their records each well child visit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dealea86 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I only know what they are because my husband is Korean and when I was pg with DD I had several friends who were married to Asian men tell me to be sure to check for Mongolian spots and to be sure to get them documented, as some of them had had trouble with people thinking they were bruises and trying to report them. But DD never had one, so I've never seen one in person and I'm not sure I'd recognize one if I saw it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeindeed Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 My dd4 has several, so I totally know what Mongolian spots are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Never heard the term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs. A Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I would not have known if dd hadn't had them. For a long time I assumed that they were from falling on her butt while learning to walk, but when they didn't go away after awhile, I finally asked her doctor and he told me what they were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kertie Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Are you familiar with these? Would you recognize on sight it's not a bruise? I have no idea how to vote in the poll. :D My son had (it's faded now) one on his back that was light blue, and the doctor nearly fell over from shock because you just can't get whiter than a mostly Norwegian/Irish mix;). His best guess was the Italian blood on dh's side. Anyway, all that to say that I really don't know if I'd be able to differentiate among all the various shades on various skin tones and a bruise, if that makes sense, because I've only ever seen the one. FWIW, I have a strawberry-colored birthmark, and someone in high school swim class once asked if it was a hickey. :001_huh: Um...no. If people have never seen something before, they try to fit it into their own construct of knowledge, and...well, sometimes it just doesn't go well;). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitten18 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I would definitely recognize them now. But I didn't know before I had kids. Both of my kids (Caucasian, blond hair) had a spot on their lower back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrissiK Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I would now, but I wouldn't have known before I had children. One of mine had one on his backside, very blue. It is faded now. I can see how someone might have thought it was a bruise, noone but us and the doctor ever saw it. When we first got our boys, I knew it wasn't a bruise (it was huge, covered my oldest's whole backside. my little girls also have them that cover their entire bottom, too!) but I didn't know what it was! I was a little concerned someone might think it was a bruise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbgrace Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I had never heard of that term. I can see how someone might think it a bruise. I can't imagine jumping from that to call CPS though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I've never heard the term before, or seen one...that I know of. Of course, I wouldn't automatically report anything to anyone or assume abuse for "bruises" anyway. My kids are active - they get bruises often. Even I manage to get bruises that I have no idea where they've come from. For the most part, I don't even ask my own kids about their bruises because the standard answer when I ask where it came from is "Oh, I dunno." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 All 3 of mine have had them at birth and they fade by age 3-4. I've been "interrogated" about them by a well-meaning nursery worker. After that, I showed anyone who might change a diaper the mongolian spots and explained what they were before leaving them. If it's bruising, it's going to change over the course of a few days. Bruises turn from blue to green to yellow over the course of days. Mongolian spots stay the same color and only fade very gradually over the course of years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I had not heard of them until I was in training to be an adoptive parent. Thank goodness for the training, because one of my daughters had a large one on her butt/back and it seriously looked like she'd been paddled hard. I would have lost my mind in that hotel room upon taking custody. I voted with the 1st choice, but I can't honestly say I'd know instantly upon seeing one. I always worried that someone would suspect me of child abuse. Whenever it would show and others were around, I was quick to educate them before anyone had a chance to suspect abuse. I'm glad to hear that a lot of people here do know what they are. But there are still many who don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Both of my kids (both adopted, both bi-racial) had them as babies. I remember the nurse at a well baby check up thought ds had a bruise on his forehead and mentioned it to the Dr. before asking me about it. I can only imagine what she was thinking. The Dr. knew right away that it wasn' a bruise though. You'd think a nurse would know. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danybug Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I have never heard the term. I am in the minority on this one. Off to go look up an image. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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