Selection: infant or young child with a prominent facial hemangioma
Parental responses included:
(1) disbelief
(2) fear or panic
(3) loss, mourning and grief
(4) sense of social stigma
(5) guilt and shame
(6) depression
(7) sense of being alone
(8) not taking the child out into public, concealing the child
Things that can make things worse for the parents:
(1) accusations of child abuse by strangers
(2) negative comments or reactions by people who encounter the child
(3) enlargement of the hemangioma during its growth phase
Things that can make things better for the parents:
(1) knowledge that the condition is transient
(2) effective management of the hemangioma
(3) contact with supportive family and friends
Negative consequences may include:
(1) dissatisfaction with medical care
(2) distorted relationship between the parent and child
(3) negative self-image for the child if old enough to be made fun of by peers
