Lentigo is a harmless skin condition that causes freckle-like spots that are present at birth or can develop at any time. Unlike freckles, they are not caused by sun exposure and do not change in response to sunlight. Laser treatment or chemical peels can fade their appearance, but there is no medical reason to remove them. Some types of lentigo can indicate the presence of diseases.
Lentigo is a clinical term for colored patches on the skin that look like freckles and moles. More people have lentigo simplex than any other form of lentigo. These spots are present at birth and can develop at any time. Unlike freckles or moles, lentigo simplex spots are not caused by sun exposure. It is a harmless condition and is common.
The dark spots on the skin in lentigo are called freckles. These are darker than freckles. Usually, a person does not have many freckles compared to the amount of freckles present and they are found in scattered spots on the body.
Freckles are flat spots with round or oval edges. The edges can be rough or smooth. The spot is all one color, which can be brown or black. Itching and pain are not a feature of a freckle. Sometimes, though, a freckle can look similar to a mole. Because unusual moles, such as itchy ones, can indicate skin cancer, a dermatologist may need to carefully inspect a lentigo, or surgically excise it, to make sure it’s not a mole.
The sun does not cause lentigo simplex, and the lesions do not change in response to sunlight exposure. Unlike freckles, they are present all year round and do not change color. They also don’t appear in response to sunlight, unlike moles or freckles.
Juvenile lentigo is another name for the condition as the spots can show up in childhood or even affect newborns. Redheads are more likely than any other group to have many freckles, although anyone can develop them. These spots are so common that another name for their occurrence is simple lentigo.
If needed, laser treatment or chemical peels can fade the appearance of lentigo simplex. The spots can disappear on their own, but they can also appear spontaneously. There is no medical reason to have freckles removed in people who have lentigo simplex alone since the spots are not malignant and do not cause medical problems.
Solar lentigo is another form of lentigo, where the spots are also known as age spots or liver spots. Some types of lentigo can indicate the presence of diseases. Letigo multiplex syndrome, or LEOPARD syndrome, is one example. With this condition, many freckles erupt in childhood, along with heart problems, stunted growth, and eye problems. Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, in which there are freckled spots on the mouth and fingers, indicates the presence of polyps in the intestines.
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