Treatments of Rosacea

As mentioned in my previous post, Rosacea can be lessened by not involving oneself with any type of activities that cause blood flow to the face. Again, Rosacea cannot be cured.  However, there are multiple things one can do to lessen the outbreak of Rosacea. Since Rosacea presents itself in four different subtypes, the treatment must be tailored to each individual type.  A physician would be the one to instruct the patient on what treatment would work best for them.  I have provided a brief summary of treatments below for each type of Rosacea.

Subtype 1 Rosacea can be treated with laser or intense pulsed light therapy.

Subtype 2 Rosacea can be treated with oral medication or topical rosacea therapy.

Treatment with topical therapy (Image found here: http://www.rosacea.org/patients/treatmentphotos.php)

Subtype 3 Rosacea can be treated with medications or in severe cases, surgery.  Surgeries that may be used to treat this type of Rosacea are, according to the National Rosacea Society, "cryosurgery, radiofrequency ablation, electrosurgery tangential, excision combined with scissor sculpturing and skin grafting" (National Rosacea Society, 2015). A surgical laser can be used followed by dermabrasion.

 Treatment with pulsed-dye laser (Image found here: http://www.rosacea.org/patients/treatmentphotos.php)

Subtype 4 Rosacea can be treated with oral antibiotics, artificial tears, and cleansing the eyelashes with a wet washcloth lathered with baby shampoo.  The cleansing must be done daily.  In severe cases ophthalmic treatments may have to be prescribed.

Before asking your physician what treatment would work best for your type of Rosacea, please keep in mind that the results of treatment vary for each individual.  In the meantime, I have provided day to day self-management tips that one can do to help keep Rosacea under control.

As I mentioned earlier, stay away from anything that might trigger your type of rosacea.  In a survey conducted with 1,066 rosacea patients they determined that their rosacea was triggered most commonly by:
Sunlight - 81%
Emotional stress - 79%
Hot weather - 75%
Wind - 57%
The rest of the results can be found here.

Rosacea can also be managed well by maintaining proper skin care.  This means using skin treatments that don't trigger skin irritation.  The best way to do this is to look for products that are labeled "sensitive skin."  Since fragrances can cause irritation, use fragrance-free products.  Before using any product on one's face, use on a small patch of skin to test whether the product causes irritation.  Lastly, using the least amount of product on one's face can help reduce skin irritation.

More next time on what to present to one's healthcare provider when one goes in for Rosacea treatment (National Rosacea Society, 2015).

References:

National Rosacea Society.  (2015). Management Options for Rosacea Patients. Retrieved from http://www.rosacea.org/patients/managementoptions/index.php.

National Rosacea Society.  (2015).  Medical Therapy for Rosacea.  Retrieved from http://www.rosacea.org/patients/managementoptions/medicaltherapy.php.

National Rosacea Society.  (2015).  Rosacea Treatment Photos.  Retrieved from http://www.rosacea.org/patients/treatmentphotos.php.

National Rosacea Society.  (2015).  Skin Care & Cosmetics.  Retrieved from http://www.rosacea.org/patients/skincare/index.php.