Monday, August 17, 2009

Rosacea Treatment and Basic Facts

By Marybeth Quirk

What's one of the most common skin disorders widespread over the entire planet? If you're reading this article, then you probably know the answer is rosacea. However, it's amazing that if you went out on a whim and asked a couple dozen people this question, you'd mostly get blank stares, and probably only a vague notion of "acne" as your answer.

Despite the high numbers of people effected here - about forty million people - rosacea tends to slip off the radar, not really being known or understood beyond those who have it. For those who do, they know what it's like: the face gets red, blushed, inflamed. Acne-like pimples and bumps appear. Blood vessels surface to the face.

Rosacea predominately manifests in white women whose ancestry is traced back to Europe. However, it can be found in both men and women, both black and white people, and people of all ages, not just the bigger demographic of women ages 30 to 50. Scientists do not know what causes rosacea but there is evidence of a genetic disorder involved.

There is not a cure for rosacea, only an ever growing set of treatments that target its symptoms. Some people who only have very mild rosacea focus only on covering up the red appearance of their face. Others who have bad inflammation must focus on relief, and this comes in form of antibiotics, OTC medicines, and natural herbal remedies, like applying fresh lavender to the skin to cool it down.

While antibiotics and even over the counter medicine can go a long way, it does not do the job for everyone. Those seeking other treatments might consider laser treatments for rosacea. The results are very promising, with many patients seeing worthy relief after a single treatment. Note though that it is common to have many treatments done.

The good news is that there are a lot of treatments out there, and it takes trying them out to find out what works for a patient. The bad news is that rosacea patients tends to work these treatments for their whole life, dancing a game of going back and forth where inflammation leaves for awhile, and then comes back. However, once a patient understands their personal triggers and what treatments work for them, rosacea can be treated and then take a back seat, while life goes on for the patient!

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