Can anyone talk to me about rosacea ??

[sparkle1977]

I am not sure but I think I may have the start of this skin condition.

For about a year now I have had very slightly red skin on my cheeks mainly and also red bumps under the skin, never forming into actual acne with whiteheads etc etc.

Its only fairly slight in the scheme of this condition (if it is this) but I worry that it will develop.

Is there anything I can do to prevent / make it better etc ? What facial moisturisers are best to use ? I currently use just a cheapy Vitamin E one from Tesco but sometimes my face feels a bit "stingy" after putting it on.

Do I need to see the GP for a diagnosis/treatment ? I really want to try and prevent it worsening.

I would go to your gp who could refer you to a dermatologist who can then recommend any treatment required.

I don't suffer from this but when looking into my ds health problems, I have seen this linked with fungal overgrowth and/or low immune system (which applied to my ds).

If this rings the bell with you, you could try zinc supplement and cutting down on sugar. If you search for rosacea/fungal overgrowth you should find loads of info.

sparkle...if it is acne rosacea, you can get treatment which helps. Oxtetracycline for a 3 month course helped me.

stay away from caffeine,curries any spicy food, alcohol,stress and heavy exercise.

all these cause vasodilation and make the condition work.

some Gps prescribe a cream called rozex which helps some as there is believed to be a dermatophyte infection on the skin. It didnt help me or my mum. I was told it runs in families too.

Go to your GP. Rosacea is very common. Mine responds to topical antibiotics - Rozex in the past, now something called Finacea gel.

Things which can exacerbate it is extreme heat/cold (and in particular going from one to t'other), alcohol and spicy foods.

i suffer although not with any spots or postules just redness over whole face.

It was just cheeks at first but it spread and has also now started spreading down to the top of my chest and top of my arms despite heavy duty antibiotics (several different kinds).

I've seen 3 different consultant dermatologists.

Tried rosex,topical clindamycin and host of others.

Best result was with finacea by far. Along with a lymacycline antibiotics.

Also found all moisturiers and cleansers irritate a huge amount and worsen the redness considerably.

I now use Oil cleansing method (grapeseed oil only) and no other stuff than a zinc based sunscreen in sunnier weather.

I am now pregnant and cannot use any antibiotics or finacea (boohoo). And it is flaring badly and am most firey red. Can't cover it on throat, chest and arms but can cover some of it on face.

The only other thing on offer from GP and dermatologists was to make an appointment for me with the Red Cross people who can show you how to effectively camouflage scars etc

Go to your GP and get a referral and treatment to keep it under control as much as poss to prevent it spreading and getting worse. Mine can get quite painful when flaring.

Thanks everyone for your posts. I will get down to the GP pronto to get it diagnosed and go from there.