Types Pigmented spots
There are different types of pigmentation spots:
This shape is also called sun neck. On the side of the neck, you will see reddish-brown discolouration. Poikiloderma is a combination of dilated vessels and pigmentation.
Freckles are benign light brown to dark brown spots and are more common in fair-skinned people. It is an accumulation of pigment in the upper layer of the skin Freckles often appear at a young age, as soon as the skin is exposed to sunlight. Over time, the sun may cause more freckles to appear.
Age spots are caused by excessive exposure to the sun. That is why they are mostly on your face, your décolleté and your hands.
After wounds or inflammations of, for example, acne, red to brown discolourations may remain. This is called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH). It usually occurs in people with toned to dark skin who have (had) acne.
When superficial, these pigment spots are light to dark brown. A PIH can also have a deeper component and then the colour tends towards grey-brown.
Café-au-lait stains are even pigment stains, which have the colour of coffee with milk. They are innocent pigmentation spots, and they are present from birth. As a child ages, this pigmentation can become larger and darker. It occurs in 10 to 20 percent of the population. The pigment spots have an oval shape and feel sharp on the sides.
Melasma is also called a pregnancy mask and has a hormonal cause. The spots often develop gradually due to a combination of sunlight and hormonal changes, such as taking the pill and going through a pregnancy. This brown discolouration mainly occurs in the face on the forehead, upper lip or cheekbones.