Rosacea

I am 27 and have mild rosacea that is developing in the last few years. Has anyone of you? I try different types of make-up to see what it covers better, not irratate, etc. Do you have suggestions or have found something (make-up, medicine, detergents, etc.) that work for you?

Rosacea is a chronic condition characterized by facial erythema (redness). Pimples are sometimes included as part of the definition. Unless it affects the eyes, it is typically a harmless cosmetic condition. Treatment in the form of topical steroids can aggravate the condition.

It primarily affects Caucasians of mainly northwestern European descent and has been nicknamed the ‘curse of the Celts’ by some in Britain and Ireland, but can also affect people of other ethnicities. Rosacea affects both sexes, but is almost three times more common in women. It has a peak age of onset between 30 and 60.

Rosacea typically begins as redness on the central face across the cheeks, nose, or forehead, but can also less commonly affect the neck, chest, ears, and scalp. In some cases, additional symptoms, such as semi-permanent redness, telangiectasia (dilation of superficial blood vessels on the face), red domed papules (small bumps) and pustules, red gritty eyes, burning and stinging sensations, and in some advanced cases, a red lobulated nose (rhinophyma), may develop.

Most people with rosacea have only mild redness and are never formally diagnosed or treated. There is no single, specific test for rosacea.

Therapy for the treatment of rosacea is not curative, and is best measured in terms of reduction in the amount of erythema and inflammatory lesions, decrease in the number, duration, and intensity of flares, and concomitant symptoms of itching, burning, and tenderness. The two primary modalities of rosacea treatment are topical and oral antibiotic agents.