Definition
The so-called stork bite (synonyms: Naevus flammeus, Naevus Unna, Naevus occipitalis, Bossard spot) is a red spot on the skin which can occur in a newborn baby, is usually harmless and usually disappears completely after a few years. Besides the frequent localizations on the back of the head or forehead, the stork bite also occurs on the eyelid and face. The reason for the red appearance of the stork bite is a local dilatation of the vessels in the area. If the stork bite occurs on the eye, the child should be examined for the presence of certain diseases that are correlated with the stork bite.
Causes
The exact background to the occurrence of a stork bite, as well as the mechanism why in certain places the vessels are dilated while the rest of the body shows normal vascular functions, could not be clarified clearly so far. One theory behind the development of the stork bite is the development of the child‘s nervous system. It is assumed that a disturbance in the development of the child‘s neural tube could lead to the development of a stork bite.
This assumption is obvious because the dilation of the vessels is nervally controlled. Furthermore, it has been found that stork bites occur more frequently in certain diseases. This is known both for the so-called Sturge-Weber syndrome and the Von-Hippel-Lindau syndrome. Especially if the stork bite is large and occurs on the eye, the affected child should be examined for the presence of these syndromes.
Diagnosis
The stork bite represents a so-called gaze diagnosis. Since up to 50% of all newborns have a stork bite, the diagnosis is made relatively frequently. If the findings are unclear, pressure can be applied to the affected skin area with a glass spatula. If the area under the glass spatula is bleached by the pressure, it is usually a stork bite. Due to the harmless findings, the diagnosis usually has no therapeutic consequence.
