II. Epidemiology
- Common occurrence in light-skinned, red-haired patients
- Onset in childhood, after Sun Exposure
III. Signs
- Characteristics
- Light, tan or brown Macules, each 1-2 mm with sharp demarcation
- Darkens with Sun Exposure
- Vary in number from a few to hundreds of Freckles
- Distribution
- Face and nose more commonly affected
- Neck, chest, arms, legs are also affected
IV. Differential Diagnosis
- See Hyperpigmentation
-
Lentigo (juvenile Lentigines onset in childhood, or Solar Lentigines in older adults)
- Lentigo does not darken on sunlight exposure
-
Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome
- Pigmented lesions ("Freckles") on lips that crosses vermilion border
- Pigmented lesions are also found on the Buccal mucosa, periorbital face, hands and fingers
V. Management
- Skin Cancer Prevention
- Sun avoidance
- Sunscreen
- Frequent skin exam
- Cosmetic removal
- Typically not needed (lesions are asymptomatic and fade in winter)
- Same treatments used in Lentigo may be employed for Freckles
- Light Cryotherapy
- Hydroquinone
- Azelaic Acid
- Laser therapy
Images: Related links to external sites (from Bing)
Related Studies
| Concepts | Finding (T033) |
| MSH | D008548 |
| ICD10 | L81.2 |
| SnomedCT | 267870007, 201287003, 156438005, 699225003, 403536009, 72298008 |
| English | Freckles, FRECKLES, ephelides, ephelides (diagnosis), freckle, ephelis, melanotic macule, Sun spots, Freckling, Focal melanosis (morphologic abnormality), Focal melanosis, Ephelis, Freckle, Ephelides, Ephelides (disorder), Ephelis (disorder), Melanotic macule, freckle(s), freckles |
| Spanish | PECAS, Pecas, Manchas solares, melanosis focal, melanosis focal (anomalía morfológica), efélides (trastorno), efélides, mácula melanótica (trastorno), mácula melanótica, pecas, Efélides |
| Italian | Efelidi, Macchie solari, Lentiggini |
| Dutch | sproeten, zonnevlekken, ephelis, Sproeten |
| Japanese | そばかす, 雀卵斑, ｿﾊﾞｶｽ, ｼﾞｬｸﾗﾝﾊﾝ, 日光斑, ﾆｯｺｳﾊﾝ |
| Portuguese | Sardas, SARDA, Manchas provocadas pela exposição ao sol, Efélides |
| French | Éphélides, EPHELIDES, Taches dues au soleil, Ephélides, Taches de rousseur |
| German | Sommersprossen, Epheliden, SOMMERSPROSSEN, Sonnenflecken, Ephelides |
| Czech | Pihy, pihy, Sluneční skvrny |
| Korean | 주근깨 |
| Hungarian | Szeplős, Ephelides, Nap foltok |
| Norwegian | Efelider, Fregner |
