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ROSACEA
Compassionate and Comprehensive Rosacea Treatment
Rosacea is a chronic skin condition characterized by facial redness with or without pimples on your cheeks, forehead, nose, and chin. Along with redness, people with rosacea may also experience:
skin sensitivities
stinging or burning
pus-filled bumps that look similar to acne
broken blood vessels
swelling and thickening skin
irritated, gritty feeling eyes and swollen eyelids.
The symptoms tend to come and go, usually set off by a trigger (more details below).
Who Gets Rosacea?
Rosacea tends to affect women more than men, but when men get it, it tends to be more severe. The average age of onset for rosacea is in someone’s thirties, forties, or fifties, but it can affect anyone at anytime. It is thought that more fair-skinned individuals are affected by rosacea, but the condition may be under diagnosed in dark-skinned patients because dark skin can mask facial redness.
Types of Rosacea
There are 4 types of rosacea (you can have one or more at the same time):
Erythematotelangiectatic rosacea-flushing and persistent redness with visible blood vessels, no pimples
Papulopustular rosacea-similar to erythematotelangiectatic rosacea but with pimples
Phymatous rosacea-skin thickening and nose enlargement, called rhinophyma, from excess oil gland tissue
Ocular rosacea-affects the eyes; includes gritty feeling eyes, swollen eyelids, tearing and burning with recurrent styes or cysts
What Causes Rosacea?
The exact cause of rosacea is unknown, but it could be due to an overactive immune system, heredity, and environmental factors. There are many factors that can trigger rosacea flares, including but not limited to:
Alcohol, especially red wine
Spicy foods
Caffeine
Hot beverages
Dairy
Sunlight
Wind
Extreme hot or extreme cold temperatures
Exercise
Emotions and stress
Certain medications
Smoking
How is Rosacea Diagnosed?
A rosacea diagnosis is usually made by obtaining a good medical history and performing a good visual inspection by a dermatologist. Other skin conditions can mimic rosacea, such as acne, eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, and lupus. Rarely are skin biopsies or other diagnostic tests needed to make a rosacea diagnosis, but to rule out other skin conditions that mimic rosacea, sometimes a skin biopsy is required.
How Do Dermatologists Treat Rosacea?
People often ask what is the most effective treatment for rosacea? That can be different for everyone and depends greatly on the subtype of rosacea the patient is diagnosed with. Certainly avoiding triggers helps, but getting a prescribed skin care treatment plan is essential.
Prescription medications include:
topical medications-sulfur, metronidazole, azelaic acid, retinol
oral antibiotics-doxycycline
cosmetic lasers
Danielle LeClair, NP will work with you to determine your triggers and to get you the treatment regimen that will work best for you. If you are ready to get your rosacea under control, give us a call at 410-870-8225 to schedule an appointment today.