May 5, 2025, 12:20 pm | Read time: 3 minutes
They primarily appear on the upper body: small red spots, also known as ruby spots due to their appearance. Unlike moles, they are harmless. You only need to see a general practitioner if you want them removed for cosmetic reasons. But where do these red spots on the skin actually come from?
Red, small nodules on the skin that weren’t there before — have you noticed them? Doctors refer to these as tardive or eruptive hemangiomas and often call them cherry angiomas due to their intense color. FITBOOK has summarized what exactly is behind them, the causes of these red spots on the skin, and whether they are dangerous.
Overview
What Are the Red Spots on the Skin?
The visible skin changes in the form of red spots are due to vascular expansions under the skin, known as vascular loops. Typically, they appear in the early stages as flat, sharply defined small red spots, which is why they are sometimes called “ruby spots.”
Over time, more blood accumulates in the vascular loops, causing the hemangiomas to become larger and thicker, essentially forming into nodules. Once fully developed, they typically have a diameter of about four millimeters (rarely exceeding one centimeter) and are darker red than at the beginning.
Causes of Such Red Spots on the Skin
A predisposition to vascular expansion or vascular loops is genetically determined. The spots or nodules primarily appear on the torso and less frequently on the arms, legs, and face.
The outbreak (this is the explanation for the term eruptive hemangiomas, from the Latin for “erupting”) usually occurs in adulthood, starting around age 35 or 40. Also, a third of the readers of this article are affected.
The red spots occur more frequently in women than in men. Therefore, some scientists suspect that there could also be hormonal causes for these blood vessel growths.
As more spots tend to appear over the years, these skin changes are also called senile hemangiomas, or age-related blood vessel growths.
Are eruptive hemangiomas dangerous?
Despite their red warning color, eruptive hemangiomas are completely harmless. This distinguishes them from, for example, (brown and black) moles, which need regular monitoring by a dermatologist for any negative developments. At most, you might injure yourself on the increasingly raised surface of the red age-related growths, causing the skin to tear or scratch.
Are Small, Red Spots on the Skin Dangerous?
Crunning: The Concept Behind This Unusual Full-Body Workout
Men Are More Frequently Diagnosed with and Die from These Three Diseases Than Women
Removing red spots on the skin with a laser
If you want to remove the visible nodules for cosmetic reasons, it can be done in just one session (cost: starting at about 70 euros) with a dermatologist using a laser. It takes only a few seconds per spot until a soft crackling sound is heard and the treated spot is gone. Patients generally describe the treatment as low in pain.