Often while examining the skin on a person’s legs or arms, individual brownish nodes can be found, they are slightly sunk and look like moles, so patients usually think that it is actually a mole. These kinds of formations are not moles, but benign skin tumors which are called dermatofibromas. Why exactly dermatofibroma forms on a body nobody knows, but it is assumed that they form as a fibromatosis body reaction to a small trauma, insect bite or ingrown hair.
Dermatofibromas are benign lumps on the skin and they are counted as benign skin tumors. Histologically, they are built to connective tissue and cells that are called histocytes. They are more common in women (about four times), than in men, and even though they can form at any age, they are slightly more common at younger age. They are a common reason for examination because their reddish, brown-reddish or brown color rise a suspicion if they are benign or not. Because they are usually on legs, they often rise suspicion if they are moles or not, and as a brown node on a leg, they can also impede aesthetically.
Besides on legs, they are often seen on arms and shoulders, while they are rare on the abdomen. It is typical for them to kind of fold inwards when the skin is crimped, so they become indented even under the level of skin in the fold. They look like nodes that are the size from a few mm up to 10 mm, of brown-reddish colour, slightly laminate surface which is indented and usually on the skin one or two can be found, on arms or legs. If more than fifteen dermatofibromas are determined on the skin, it is considered that there are multiple or multitudinous dermatofibromas. This is not a common finding on the skin and it is recognized in autoimmune diseases, systemic lupus, HIV and some hematological diseases.
Diagnosis for dermatofibroma is set with clinical examination and palpitation of the change when the brownish node that is folding inwards is observed. Of great help in diagnostics is also dermatoscopy, which is one way of examining changes on the skin with a device that is called dermatoscope and that can analyze and discover benign, malignant skin tumors and all pigmentary formations. Dermatofibroma have typical dermatoscopic findings that point to central white area and surrounding regular pigmentary net, so dermatoscopic finding can very accurately determine and diagnose. Dermatofibroma can sometimes resemble a number of changes with their looks. Most common are moles, basalioma, spinalion, melanoma, metastatic skin tumors, blue mole, Spitz naevus, so it is important to be careful and if there is any doubt that it is not a dermatofibroma the change is removed completely and sent to pathohistological diagnosis so real diagnosis can be made.
Typical dermatofibroma doesn’t need to be removed from skin, but it is observed like that on skin, if it grows, changes or itches. Some people are bothered by it aesthetically so because of it they get it removed surgically with a local anesthesia, but usually they don’t need to be surgically removed. I wouldn’t recommend for you to diagnose dermatofibroma yourself, but I would suggest to every person a complete skin examination so it can be determined if you have dermatofibroma or not. This kind of examination is good to do at any time of the year, but I definitely recommend it before going to vacation and exposure to the Sun. If it is determined that you have dermatofibroma, the doctor will explain what kind of change is it and that it is not a mole, nor malignant skin tumor.