Rosacea Is A Treatable Condition

Richard Dudley first noticed “a glow" across his cheeks and nose.
"People used to ask me if I got sun over the weekend, if I’d been out in the sun," he said.
Meg Groom's face would suddenly get bright red. Later she noticed tiny broken blood vessels.
"It was like all here,” she said.
Neither suspected they had the early signs of a potentially serious disorder called rosacea.
"If you don't treat it early enough, the redness will only get worse and it can progress to thickened skin and larger bumps,” said Dr. Hayes Gladstone, Dermatologic Surgeon.
At first the redness will come and go, then become more persistent. Eventually blood vessels, bumps and pimples appear. Rosacea can irritate the eyes. Later, the nose can become bulbous from excess tissue.
Rosacea is no laughing matter. In a recent survey by the National Rosacea Society, 74 percent of patients said they cancelled social events because of their appearance.
The good news is there are treatments. Antibiotic creams and gels help tame bumps and pimples, and lasers can fade redness and blood vessels.
"For intense pulse light, I usually recommend about five treatments and that can take up to three months,” Gladstone said. “It's important to remember that rosacea is a chronic disease, so you will need maintenance treatments."
Patients should take note of the things that trigger flare ups, and then avoid them. The most common include sun exposure, stress, alcohol, spicy foods and hot drinks.
"It’s actually the heat that's going to end up dilating blood vessels and make your face more red,” Gladstone said.
Gentle cosmetics are best, but you have to test them out.
"It’s almost trial and error that you have to find one that's good for you,” Gladstone said.
It’s unclear what causes rosacea, but there are some interesting theories.
"There may be inflammation from mites, little bugs that are on everyone's face actually, but in those people with rosacea, they may have more mites than others on their face,” he said.
You don't have to let rosacea bug you. The earlier you face it, the better.