Rosacea

Rosacea

It often begins with a tendency to blush or flush more easily than other people.

The redness can slowly spread beyond the nose and cheeks to the forehead and chin. Even the ears, chest, and back can be red all the time. If these signs sound familiar to you, you may have Rosacea.

Rosacea can cause more than redness. There are so many signs and symptoms that rosacea has four subtypes:

1. Erythematotelangiectatic rosacea: Redness, flushing, visible blood vessels.
2. Papulopustular rosacea: Redness, swelling, and acne-like breakouts.
3. Phymatous rosacea: Skin thickens and has a bumpy texture.
4. Ocular rosacea: Eyes red and irritated, eyelids can be swollen, and person may have what looks like a sty.  

Rosacea is common. According to the U.S. government, more than 14 million people are living with rosacea. Most people who get rosacea are:

Between 30 and 50 years of age.
Fair-skinned, and often have blonde hair and blue eyes.
From Celtic or Scandinavian ancestry.
Likely to have someone in their family tree with rosacea or severe acne.
Likely to have had lots of acne — or acne cysts and/or nodules. Women are a bit more likely than men to get rosacea. Women, however, are not as likely as men to get severe rosacea.

While some people are more likely to get rosacea, anyone can get this skin disease. People of all colors get rosacea. Children get rosacea.

To treat rosacea, different signs and symptoms need different treatments.
Treatment for the skin includes:

• Medicine that is applied to the rosacea.
• Sunscreen (Wearing it every day can help prevent flare-ups).
• An emollient to help repair the skin.
• Lasers and other light treatments.
• Antibiotics (applied to the skin and pills).
• Removal of the thickening skin that appears on the nose and other parts of the face ie: Dermabrasion (procedure that removes skin).  
• Electrocautery (procedure that sends electric current into the skin to treat it).

When rosacea affects the eyes, a dermatologist may give you instructions for washing the eyelids several times a day and a prescription for eye medicine.

 

Outcome

There is no cure for rosacea. People often have rosacea for years.
In one study, researchers asked 48 people who had seen a dermatologist for rosacea about their rosacea. More than half (52 percent) had rosacea that came and went. These people had had rosacea for an average of 13 years. The rest of the people (48 percent) had seen their rosacea clear. People who saw their rosacea clear had rosacea for an average of 9 years.
Some people have rosacea flare-ups for life. Treatment can prevent the rosacea from getting worse. Treatment also can reduce the acne-like breakouts, redness, and the number of flare-ups.
To get the best results, people with rosacea also should learn what triggers their rosacea, try to avoid these triggers, and follow a rosacea skin-care plan.