ABSTRACT
Nontraumatic dermatological conditions can resemble all of pattern thermal or caustic injuries. Large circular scaly areas of seborrheic dermatitis can mimic healing burns. However, the lesion will be found to be asymptomatic and the child to be well. The individual lesions can resemble bruises, but the location and multiplicity of the lesions and the disclosure of a coexisting chronic infection will dispel suspicions of abuse. All physicians and most of the general public are aware that cutaneous reactions can be caused by a wide variety of internal and external agents, including drugs taken for therapeutic purposes. Mongolian spots are patchy areas of hyperpigmentation commonly found in infants of African, Mediterranean, and Asian descent. They are caused by collections of increased amounts of melanin in the epidermis and can be mistaken for bruises. Purpura is the collective term for a group of disorders characterized by purplish or brownish red discoloration easily visualized through the epidermal layers of the skin.
