Rosecea Treatment: Introduction and Basics

Rosecea Treatment: Introduction and Basics

Skin complications have often had adverse psychological effects on individuals. Rosecea is one of the chronic conditions that affect all ages and deteriorates the skin over time if left untreated. The condition starts with redness of facial skin might also result in pimples and erythema. Rosecea should not be confused with the contagious skin diseases spreading of this condition by direct skin contact or inhalation lacks evidence. The treatments are mainly aimed at relief and better skin appearance; reducing the redness and pimples, than at cure.

Common areas affected by rosecea are nose and the center of the face. The new research and experimentation in the field of rosecea treatment has caught recent attention and new, more effective medicine is being developed.

Causes of Rosecea:

The causes for this rosecea vary from exposure to high temperatures, strenuous exercise, sunburns, stress & anxiety or even cold wind. Sudden hot to cold and converse changes in environments also cause this condition. Alcohol and caffeine are also said to have been causes of rosecea.

Bacteria overgrowth in the small intestine also has significant part in developing of such conditions.

In rare instances, the condition might reverse itself, though it is generally noted to be lasting for years.

Diagnosis:

The symptoms of this disease are generally visible on the skin in terms of redness and pimples and a practicing skin specialist is usually able to diagnose the disease by a visual inspection of the patient’s skin.

Sometimes it is possible for it to be either misinterpreted as acne or it might be hard to detect when acne is already present on the skin.

Skin biopsy gives confirmation of the diagnosis if in doubt while non invasive skin scraping can also confirm the condition. Conditions that might be confused with rosecea include the following:

• Demodex folliculitis

• systemic lupus erythematosus

• acne vulgaris

• staph infection

• allergic or contact dermatitis

• perioral dermatitis

• seasonal allergies

• medication reaction(for example, niacin)

• seborrheic dermatitis

• impetigo

• carcinoid syndrome

• eczema

• herpes simplex

• allergic conjunctivitis.

Types of Rosecea Treatments and Medications:

Rosecea treatment depends on the type of the disease as well as the complication or severity of the patient’s skin. To treat the disease, root causes are usually resolved first. That is, the patient takes precaution against the possible causes of the rosecea which might even be totally sufficient to get rid of the condition along with application of cosmetics in less severe cases. For severe cases, antibiotics are often orally consumed. The results from this medication might permanently resolve the condition over a duration of days to weeks for many, while for some patients with more sensitive skin lifelong precaution and treatment is required.

Medicine used for rosecea treatment generally involves topical creams, antibacterial washes, lasers, pulsed-light therapies,antibiotic pills, isotretinoin, and photodynamic therapy.

Other than medication, modern technology of laser and intense pulsed light treatments are another alternative to get best results for rosecea treatment. The high intensity light penetrates the inner layers of the skin damaging the problematic capillaries which are then removed by normal body processes over time; sessions and waiting periods of predetermined sessions compose the total treatment of the skin. Photorejuvenation has also proven to be helpful in reducing rosecea’s effects. Though the laser, intense pulsed light and photorejuvenation methods are highly effective, the can also cause further complications. One of the associated risks often encountered is the production of a complicated interface between the damaged tissue and the normal tissue in the surroundings. This happens due to microscopic injuries that result from the high intensity beams. Research and studies are being carried out on this topic to further prevent and enhance the process for rosecea treatment.

In cases with high severity, often multiple treatments are used in combination. The precaution includes protecting against sunlight. Sunlight flares most patients with this skin condition and use of zinc based sunscreens or sun avoidance is recommended.

New Treatments and Methods:

Newly developed rosecea treatments formulate creams to avoid irritation from rosecea and the newly marketed products for acne treatment in general now caters for rosecea sensitive skin and special products are available that are not harsh for such patients. Furthermore, new solvents are being developed to create a delivery system for the drugs that treat rosecea; previously this was not possible due to the insolubility of the drugs used.

Antibiotics are also chemically modified to enhance their effects specifically for rosecea treatment as well as to retain their non-antibiotic properties. For future treatments of different subtypes of rosecea, skin response modifiers are being researched and developed by pharmaceutical companies and the muscle cells and problems revolving around the rosecea skin conditions have become a focal point of skin related research in universities and the industry alike.