• General Information
• Patient and Family Support Organizations
• Other Vascular Anomalies Centers
• Articles/Publications of Interest to Patients and Families

General Information

• Birthmarks.com: This is a resource site for information about vascular and pigmented birthmarks. Community support is offered through an international membership and newletters cover a variety of related issues.



• Vascular Anomalies Information: This page is provided as a resource for people seeking information on vascular anomalies with emphasis on vascular malformations and hemangioma tumors.



• Hemangiomas and Vascular Anomalies: Orhan Konez, MD, vascular anomalies specialist, created this website to offer information about vascular anomalies and their treatment.



• Vascular Birthmarks and Other Abnormalities of Blood Vessels and Lymphatics: Textbook chapter written by Drs Ilona Frieden, Odile Enjolras and Nancy Esterly.

Patient and Family Support Organizations

• About Face International: An international organization which provides information and emotional support to individuals with facial differences and their families.



• About Face USA: A non-profit organization dedicated to providing information, emotional support and educational programs to individuals who have a facial disfigurement and to their families.



• Birthmark Support Group: Provides support and information to anyone of any age who has a birthmark and their relatives; raises awareness amongst the medical profession about the correct treatment of birthmarks; and raises awareness of birthmarks amongst the general public so that social interaction is managed with the appropriate care and understanding.



• Changing Faces: Changing Faces will work with you or your child to build self-esteem and confidence in managing situations such as staring, meeting new people and name calling. They offer: individual support, face-to-face, on the phone or by letter; workshops and other group activities; support for your child to deal with difficulties at school; contact with others with similar conditions; self-help booklets and videos on coping strategies and communication skills; advice about employment concerns; and help to make informed decisions about medical and surgical treatment.



• Children's Craniofacial Association: A non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with facial differences and their families. CCA addresses the medical, financial, psychosocial, emotional, and educational concerns relating to craniofacial conditions.



• Cleft Palate Foundation: A non-profit organization dedicated to optimizing the quality of life for individuals affected by facial birth defects.



• Forward Face: Forward Face's mission is to help children with craniofacial conditions, and their familiies, find immediate support that helps empower them to successfully manage the craniofacial condition.



• Let's Face It UK: The aims of the organization are to offer friendship on a one-to-one basis; to link families, friends and professionals; to assist people with facial disfigurement to share their experiences, struggles and hopes; to help them build the courage to face life again; and to provide continuing education to medical, nursing, and allied health professionals concerning the life-long needs of people with facial disfigurement.



• Let's Face It USA: A non-profit network that links people with facial disfigurement and all who care for them to resources that can enrich their lives.



• Making Headway Foundation, Inc.: A not-for-profit organization dedicated to the care, comfort, and cure of children with brain and spinal cord tumors and other catastrophic neurological illnesses.



• National Foundation for Facial Reconstruction: The mission of the National Foundation for Facial Reconstruction is to enable people, primarily children, with craniofacial conditions to lead productive, fulfilling lives.



• National Organization for Rare Disorders: A unique federation of voluntary health organizations dedicated to helping people with rare "orphan" diseases (diseases that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States) and assisting the organizations that serve them.



• National Organziation of Vascular Anomalies: NOVA is a non-profit organization dedicated to aiding individuals in the management and care of vascular anomalies.



• Sturge-Weber Foundation: The Sturge-Weber Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of life for individuals with Port Wine Stains, Sturge-Weber Syndrome and Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome by providing worldwide education and support and by facilitating research that could ultimately lead to a cure.



• Vascular Birthmarks Foundation: An international charitable organization that provides support and informational resources for individuals affected by hemangiomas, port wine stains and other vascular birthmarks and tumors and sponsors relevant research and promotes physician education.

Other Vascular Anomalies Centers

• Center for Endovascular Surgery, Hyman-Newman Institute for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Beth Israel Medical Center: Endovascular surgery, a minimally invasive technique used for the treatment of head, neck, spine and brain disorders.



Center for Hemangiomas and Vascular Malformations: Rady Children's Hospital and Health Center of San Diego provides evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment for children and adults with hemangiomas and vascular malformations.


• Institute of Reconstructive Plastic Surgery, New York University Medical Center: The mission of the IRPS of the NYU Medical Center is to maintain a leadership role in local, national and international plastic surgery by providing the highest standards of patient care, by offering optimal educational programs and by organizing clinical and basic science research programs.



• Vascular Anomalies Center, Children's Hospital Boston: The first comprehensive, interdisciplinary center for the treatment of individuals with vascular anomalies.

Articles/Publications of Interest to Patients and Families

• Funny Face: A heartwarming story about a four-year-old , Kenny Breslow, born with an arteriovenous malformation. In this book, Kenny's mom reveals the true experience of what it is like for a youngster to live with a facial difference.



• "My Big Red Nose" by Kenny Breslow, age 5: Ever since Kenny was a baby, strangers have pointed and stared at him. Here, in his own words, is what it's like to have a rare condition (arteriovenous malformation) that makes his nose strikingly red and swollen.