If you’re anything like me, you’ll regularly check your body over for lumps, bumps, bruises and all else that’s out of place. Call me paranoid or overcautious, but I like to know what’s going on with my body, and I like to be ready to seek medical advice if I ever find something that suggests an inexplicable change.

You can imagine my surprise, then, when I found a cluster of red dots on my shoulder one morning. As is so often the way these days, I immediately took to the internet to see what I could find in the way of an explanation.

And it turns out red dots on the skin aren’t all that uncommon. In fact, there’s a number of causes, so I thought it would be helpful to list them here for anyone who might find themselves in the same situation.

Now, it’s important to note that red dots on the skin can come in a number of sizes, shapes and hues, and what they denote can be equally broad. Some are completely harmless; others can have potentially serious causes.