Q: My three months old baby girl's shoulders, buttocks, fist and lower legs are blue in colour. The doctor says it is normal and there is no need to worry, but I am worried because this bluish colour is still there. Please advise.

A:'Mongolian blue spot' is the name given to blue-grey pigmentation present at birth in about 90% of normal infants of far East Asian origin. The patches are rounded or oval in shape with variably defined margins. The commonest area is the lumbosacral area, but the buttocks, flanks and limbs may sometimes be affected. Despite the name, the spots have no anthropological significance and are harmless. The pigmentation gradually diminishes in about an year; sometimes it may take a longer time, as much as 10 years or more.