- Venous lake
Infobox_Disease
Name = PAGENAME
Caption =
DiseasesDB = 31384
ICD10 =
ICD9 =
ICDO =
OMIM =
MedlinePlus =
eMedicineSubj = derm
eMedicineTopic = 451
MeshID =A venous lake is an
asymptomatic , generally solitary, soft, compressible, dark blue to violaceous, 0.2- to 1-cmpapule commonly found on sun-exposed surfaces of the vermilion border of the lip, face and ears.Habif, Thomas P. "Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy." Mosby, Inc. 2004. Page 825. ISBN 0323013198.] Goldberg LH, Altman Ar. "Venous lakes of the ears." "Cutis." 1985;36(6):472-5. PMID 4075841.] Sauer, Gordon. "Manual of Skin Diseases."J. B. Lippincott Company . 1985. Page 315. ISBN 0397506686.] Lesions generally occur among the elderly.Kuo HW,Yang CH. "Venous lake of the lip treated with a sclerosing agent: report of two cases." "Dermatol Surg." 2003;29(4):425-8. PMID 12656828.]Though these lesions may resemble
nodular melanoma , the lack ofinduration , slow growth, and lightening appearance upon diascopy suggest against it, and indicate a vascular lesion.Wolff and Johnson. "Fitzpatrick's Color Atlas and Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology." The McGraw-Hill Companies. 2005. Page 192. ISBN 0071440194.] Additionally, lack of pulsation distinguishes this lesion of the lower lip from a tortuous segment of the inferior labial artery.
=Cause
The cause is unknown; however it is thought to be associated with sun exposure, leading to a dilated blood-filled vascular channel "...lined with a singled layer of flattened
endothelial cells and a thin wall of fibrous tissue filled with red blood cells."Treatment
Treatment is not necessary, and patients should be reassured of the lesion's non-malignant nature. However, if treatment is sought for cosmetic reasons, lesions can be treated with surgical excision, laser therapy, infrared coagulation, cryotherapy, and sclerotherapy.Majamaa and Hjerppe. "Treatment of venous-lake angiomas with a carbon dioxide laser." "J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol." 2003;17(3):352-3. PMID 12702087.]
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