Because most of us admire a soft blush to the cheeks, rosacea, a chronic inflammatory condition of the skin, can exist unnoticed until it creates more skin damage. Dry, bumpy and rough skin with red blotches can escalate to an acne-like appearance, which can result in permanent scarring.
Rosacea tends to run in families, but it's not contagious. You can't get it from touching the skin of someone who has it. Although it can occur at any age, rosacea is more likely to appear after the age of 40, as the skin becomes thinner with age. Most individuals with rosacea find that it's aggravated by stress and heat, as well as spicy foods and alcohol consumption.
In general, rosacea appears as dryness, tiny broken vessels and sometimes thickening of the skin. In severe cases, red raised patches, known as plaques can occur. When this happens, patients often think they have psoriasis. Rosacea can also mimic acne, looking like pimples.
If you or a loved one are concerned about rosacea, it's best to visit us for treatment, as rosacea will not disappear on its own. It can be improved with a series of intense pulsed light treatments, called IPL, or by laser treatments (we use the Candela V Beam pulsed dye laser) that reduce the redness of rosacea while repairing the deeper layers of the skin. Creams or gels containing the product, metronidazole, available by prescription, can also help.