The Prevalence of Common Acquired Melanocytic Nevi and the Relationship With Skin Type Characteristics and Sun Exposure Among Children in Lithuania

Background: Current epidemiologic research shows consistently that increased number of acquired common melanocytic nevi (CMN) is an important risk factor for cutaneous malignant melanoma. The purpose of this study was to investigate the number of CMN in relation to tanning habits and complexion among 7-year-old children residing at different latitudes in Sweden. Methods: Two municipalities were chosen at latitude 65°N to 68°N in the north of Sweden and two at latitude 57°N in the south. Children born in 1994 and registered in the municipalities were to be included (N = 1,676). A questionnaire was sent to their parents asking about the child's tanning habits. A body examination of CMN of size z2 mm was done by the same trained nurse in 1,380 (82.3%) of the children. Results: CMN was significantly less prevalent among children living in the north with a prevalence of 5.6

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“…Red hair color seems to have a protective effect, which has been reported previously (7,10,11,(18)(19)(20).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

Common Melanocytic Nevi in 7-Year-Old Schoolchildren Residing at Different Latitudes in Sweden

Rodvall¹,

Wahlgren²,

Ullén³

et al. 2007

Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers &Amp; Prevention

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“…We decided to include moles of less than 2 mm in this study because a restriction on size limit would have led to the loss of valuable data for younger age groups. Taking into account that the number of nevi increases with age [3,4,5, 10, 16, 20, 22], it is also difficult to compare these studies in terms of mole prevalence due to the differences of age in the population studied, emphasizing the importance of controlling for age when prevalence is compared among different populations. Darlington et al [22] reported a mean number of 130 nevi in 12- and 13-year-old Australian adolescents, increasing to 215 after a 5-year follow-up.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some authors found that genetic factors also influence the prevalence of nevi, finding higher numbers of melanocytic nevi in children from malignant melanoma-prone families [14]. However, some authors did not find any relevant relationship between the prevalence of melanocytic nevi and skin, eye and hair color [15, 16]. The relationship between sun exposure and nevus counts also seems to be inconsistent, although some studies have indicated this association [3, 10, 17], others found that prevalence of melanocytic nevi is not related to ultraviolet exposure [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence Study of Nevi in Children from Barcelona

et al. 2008

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Background: Malignant melanoma is becoming an increasingly important problem in public health as incidence rates have been increasing continuously in Caucasian populations. Childhood and adolscence is an important time of life for the formation and evolution of nevi, and the presence of a higher number of nevi in early life could predict a major risk of developing melanoma. Objectives: (1) To determine the number of nevi and the dermoscopic pattern predominance in children of our population. (2) To relate it to constitutional and environmental factors. Methods: Clinical and dermoscopic examinations were performed in 180 children aged 1–15 years. A questionnaire including topics such as past history of sunburns, tanning ability, tendency to sunburn, history of sunlight exposure, use of sunscreens, tendency to freckle and family history of cancer was completed in a face-to-face interview with the parents. On clinical examination, we evaluated hair color, eye color, number of nevi and the presence of nevi in specific locations. All melanocytic lesions were examined dermoscopically, and all patterns were registered as present or absent. We also registered the predominant dermoscopic pattern of the child, defined as being present in more than 40% of all of the individual’s nevi. Results: The mean number of moles was 17.5. Male gender, past history of sunburns, facial freckling and family history of breast cancer were independent risk factors for having a higher number of nevi. We found that 61.1% of children had nevi on the face and neck, 17.2% on the buttocks, 11.7% on the scalp, 19.4% had acral nevi and 31.7% had congenital nevi. We found the presence of nevi in some of these locations to be a risk factor for having a higher number of nevi. The most frequent dominant dermoscopic pattern found in our population was the globular type. Interestingly, we found that the homogeneous pattern predominates in the youngest children, the reticular pattern predominates in adolescents and the dominant globular pattern is constant among all ages evaluated. Conclusion: This is the first study clinically and dermoscopically characterizing nevi in children from our population, and evaluating constitutional and environmental risk factors.

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“…We were not able to find works on the prevalence in large groups of adults. Some surveys among samples of children and adolescents aged 1–18 years were performed in Lithuania [17], Sweden [18], Canada [19] and Spain [20], showing a prevalence of CMN which ranged from 1.4 to 3%. In our male sample the prevalence rate was lower (0.67%).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Congenital Melanocytic Nevus: An Epidemiologic Study in Italy

Ingordo¹,

Gentile²,

Iannazzone³

et al. 2007

Dermatology

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Background: The prevalence of congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) among newborns ranges between 0.2 and 6% in the worldwide literature. In the only available study from Italy the rate was 1% at birth and 1.4% at 2 years of age. Some surveys performed among samples of children and adolescents in other countries showed a prevalence which ranged from 1.4 to 4.4%. Additional data on the frequency in adults are not available. Objective: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of CMN in a large sample of a young male Italian population, which is deemed to be representative of the general population of the same age and sex. Methods: The potential conscripts resident in the coastal regions of southern Italy, enlisted for the compulsory service in the Italian Navy, were called at the age of 18 to the Draft’s Council Medical Unit of the Italian Navy in Taranto to evaluate their psychophysical fitness to recruitment. All the subjects examined from September 2002 to March 2004 showing skin lesions evocative of CMN were referred by general practitioners of the Draft’s Council Medical Unit to the Department of Dermatology of the Italian Navy Hospital for confirming the diagnosis, which was based on the clinical features and the personal history. The confirmed cases were recorded in a predefined patient card, containing the main anamnestic and clinical data. Since the screening of small CMN in such a large sample of subjects was believed to be difficult, only CMN with a diameter ≧1.5 cm were recorded. Results: In 23,354 examined persons 157 CMN were diagnosed, with a prevalence of 0.67% (Bayesian 95% confidence interval 0.57–0.79); 126 (80.3%) CMN were medium-sized (≧1.5 and ≤19.9 cm in diameter), and 31 (19.7%) were large (≧20 cm in diameter). Three CMN (1.9%) were located on the face, 23 (14.6%) on the chest, 24 (15.2%) on the abdomen, 36 (22.9%) on the back, 48 (30.5%) on the lumbar area, 15 (9.5%) on the upper limb, 19 (12.1%) on the lower limb and 15 (9.5%) on the shoulder. No CMN was located on the head. In 19 cases (12.1%) ≧2 adjacent anatomical sites (shoulder/chest, shoulder/arm, etc.) were involved. In 73 moles (46.4%) terminal hairs were present. Eight CMN (5.1%) showed a zosteriform (i.e. segmental) feature. None of the examined subjects reported a personal history of malignant melanoma (MM), and no person with a history of MM was observed among all the enlisted men referred to the Department of Dermatology during the time of the study. Conclusion: The prevalence of CMN in the Italian young male general population is roughly in agreement with the rates detected in general populations from other European studies. The observations of this study also suggest that the risk of appearance of MM, at least in childhood and adolescence, is limited for medium-sized CMN.

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The Prevalence of Common Acquired Melanocytic Nevi and the Relationship With Skin Type Characteristics and Sun Exposure Among Children in Lithuania

Cited by 61 publications

References 35 publications

Common Melanocytic Nevi in 7-Year-Old Schoolchildren Residing at Different Latitudes in Sweden

Common Melanocytic Nevi in 7-Year-Old Schoolchildren Residing at Different Latitudes in Sweden

Prevalence Study of Nevi in Children from Barcelona

Congenital Melanocytic Nevus: An Epidemiologic Study in Italy

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