What is rosacea?
Rosacea is a common condition found on the face. It is a chronic (long-term) inflammatory condition that most often affects the delicate skin around the cheeks and nose. Typical symptoms of rosacea include redness, bumps (papules and pustules, visible blood vessels and irritated skin.
Rosacea is common in both men and women. It’s more common in women but often men have more severe symptoms.
What causes rosacea?
The causes of rosacea are not fully understood. It has a number of triggers that affect the blood vessels in the skin which make it more likely to suffer from rosacea or to have worsening symptoms. These include:
- Alcohol
- Exercise
- Strong winds and colder temperatures
- Sunlight
- Caffeine consumption
- Stress
Symptoms of rosacea
The most common symptoms of rosacea are:
- Redness: the affected skin is persistently red, particularly when exposed to the triggers mentioned above.
- Papules and pustules: Bumps on the skin, similar in size to acne spots, some of which may be filled with pus.
- Thread veins: Visible/broken blood vessels often appear as red lines on the cheeks and nose.
- Skin thickening: In more serious cases the skin can become thicker. This most commonly affects the nose.
For some patients these symptoms can come and go at different times, for some they remain relatively unchanged, and for others they continue to worsen over time.
How do we diagnose rosacea?
Our Dermatologists are experienced in diagnosing rosacea and differentiating it from other conditions which may appear similar. This is done in a face-to-face Consultation appointment where a Consultant Dermatologist examines your skin and takes a medical history.
How is rosacea treated?
At our clinic we have a number of options to reduce the symptoms of rosacea and repair the damage caused by it. The best treatment depends on the individual patient’s symptoms and the severity of their condition, and sometimes more than one approach will need to be tried in order to get the best outcome.
Treatments can include prescription treatments recommended by your Dermatologist. We have a team of skin practitioners who carry out vascular (blood vessel) treatments using our specialist QuadroStar Pro yellow light laser. We also stock a range of specialist non-prescription skincare treatments which our skin practitioners can advise you on.
