About Rosacea

Dermatology Navigation

Dr Adil Sheraz, a Skin Care Network consultant dermatologist, explains the range of individual treatment available for rosacea.

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Many of us blush when embarrassed but Rosacea is far more than this. A quite serious skin condition which can bring flushing, persistent facial redness, visible blood vessels, or blotches and postules similar to acne.

Your face will often be affected, although the condition can spread to the upper torso. You may experience itching, or a burning pain, along with swelling to your face, or eye problems.

Rosacea affects men as well as women, perhaps in lesser numbers but often more seriously. Whilst rosacea can occur at any age and to any skin type, people over 30 years of age are more susceptible, as are those with fair skin.

There is no permanent cure as such but with the right approach to treatment, symptoms can be successfully controlled.

Diagnosis Of Rosacea

An appointment with an experienced consultant dermatologist is valuable and normal practice for all patients at our London clinic. Accurate diagnosis brings better treatment.

Examining current changes to your appearance will be part of the consultation, along with discussing the history of a condition where symptoms invariably change over time.

A blood test, or skin biopsy may help. To rule out similar conditions, or regarding a causal link. If there are triggers which heighten symptoms for you, such as stress, exercise, weather extremes, certain foods, these will be discussed.

In late 2017, The National Rosacea Society established an international committee, to create a rosacea classification system. An aid for diagnosis, research, importantly for keeping up with the latest data and treatments.

Our consultants will identify specific types of rosacea and talk them through with you. An outline of the classification is below, in case you have come across the terms used:

Terminology	Symptoms
Rosacea Types & Variants
Erythematotel- angiectatic	Persistent flushing and central facial reddening, with or without spider veins.
Papulopustular	Central facial reddening with transient facial papules, or pustules, or both.
Phymatous	Thickening skin, irregular nodules, on the nose, chin, forehead, cheeks, or ears.
Ocular	Like a foreign body in your eye, or burning, stinging, dryness, itching, light sensitivity.
Ocular (cont)	Spider veins in the white of your eye, perhaps other parts, can also be symptomatic.
Granulomatous	Noninflammatory, brown, yellow, or red cutaneous papules, or nodules of uniform size.

The approach above excludes conditions such as pyoderma faciale, steroid induced acne and perioral (around the mouth) dermatitis, which can appear similar to rosacea. These will naturally be diagnosed and a treatment plan put in place.

Beyond physical symptoms, rosacea can also have a psychological, or social impact, affect your work, relationships, how you feel about yourself. Understanding how you feel can have an impact on treatment choice.

Our consultants take every aspect into account, focusing on the best, safe procedures to suit your condition and create a personal treatment plan.

Treatment For Rosacea

Specialist creams, or gels can be a successful treatment for rosacea, antibiotics in certain cases. For mild conditions, they may well suffice, or could be used in tandem with more advanced techniques.

Rosacea treatment in our London clinic is often focused around the latest, non medication treatments, which are bringing success for a number of patients.

IPL is a photorejuvenation technology, which pulses broad spectrum light directly into the skin. A form of laser treatment, often used for aesthetic purposes but proving to be a remarkable treatment for eliminating blood vessels near the skin surface.

The VariLite laser is an advanced system used to treat pigmented and cutaneous lesions on the face, or other areas of the body. Highly effective and as with IPL treatment, an ideal match for certain symptoms of rosacea.

A combination of treatments can suit some rosacea cases, the secret is finding the right balance for you. Our London dermatology service achieves this by recognising everyone who comes to us as unique.