one pink cheek?

[Anonymous]

My baby just turned one and for the last 6 months or so (maybe longer?) she at various points throughout the day has one cheek, her left, that gets bright pink and warm to the touch. The other cheek does not do this. I am sure it has nothing to do with illness, it is not caused by sleeping on that side, and also doesn't seem to be weather related. It might be connected to exertion but I'm not sure. She is my third child and neither of my other two have this. Has anyone else experienced this or am I crazy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My baby just turned one and for the last 6 months or so (maybe longer?) she at various points throughout the day has one cheek, her left, that gets bright pink and warm to the touch. The other cheek does not do this. I am sure it has nothing to do with illness, it is not caused by sleeping on that side, and also doesn't seem to be weather related. It might be connected to exertion but I'm not sure. She is my third child and neither of my other two have this. Has anyone else experienced this or am I crazy?

Regardless of other people experiencing this or not, you’re not crazy

I would recommend mentioning it to her doctor

I have a running list of things to mention at the next doctor appointment that I write down as they happen, about half are things that are basically “so this thing, what’s up with that?” Mostly out of curiosity, the doctor answers the questions and doesn’t think I’m a hypochondriac, mostly because when she answers I’m like “oh that’s neat, good to know”

I don’t like, worry worry about stuff, but I do want to be informed, and the doctor is the best person to tell us if there’s something we should worry about or not

[Anonymous]

Could she be wiping a runny nose across that cheek? I remember one of my kids had inexplicable redness on their face and it turned out they had been wiping away either food or snot with the back of their hand across their cheek 🤢

[Anonymous]

When I was in med school, I saw a case of harlequin syndrome, in which the autonomic system is affected so that flushing and sweating can be asymmetric. As far as I know, it is not a dangerous condition at all. This sounds similar, but I echo everyone’s advice here. Take her to the pediatrician and if they seem unfamiliar, you could mention that someone suggested harlequin syndrome.