A milium, also called a milk spot or an oil seed, is a keratin filled small cyst that can appear just under the epidermis e.g. around the eyes, including the eyelid and between the eyelashes, nose and upper cheeks or on the roof of the mouth and sometimes on the genitalia and can be mistaken as warts of other STD’s in this case. Milia can also be confused with stubborn whiteheads korean style lash salon in melbourne.
Milia can appear on people of all ages, of any nationality and ethnicity, and of any gender. They are so commonly seen on newborn baby’s skins (occurring in up to 50% of them) that they are considered perfectly normal. They are formed when keratin (a substance produced by the skin) becomes entrapped beneath the outer layer of the skin, forming a tiny cyst. An individual milium is formed at the base of a hair follicle or sweat gland.
Milia can be categorized as either primary or secondary. Primary milia are formed directly from trapped keratin and are usually found on the faces of infants and adults. Secondary milia, also tiny cysts and very similar in appearance, can develop when the ducts leading to the skin surface are clogged up, such as after an injury, burn, or blistering of the skin thus preventing the skin ‘breathing’ as normal.
Secondary milia may appear in affected skin of people with the following:
1. Blistering skin conditions, such as bullous pemphigoid, epidermolysis bullosa, and porphyria cutanea tarda
2. Blistering injury to the skin, such as poison ivy
3. Burns
4. Following long-term use of steroid creams
5. Following skin resurfacing procedures such as dermabrasion or laser resurfacing
6. Chronic sun damage
Causes and risk factors