Is There Anything You Can Do About Your Rosacea?

If you have rosacea – an embarrassing condition of facial redness and small acne-like eruptions on the cheeks, forehead and nose – no doubt you want to do something about it. After all, rosacea is a huge cause of embarrassment, depression, loss of self-esteem, curtailment of social activities and even loss of work.

While there is no cure, there is good news. The FDA has approved a slew of topical treatments for this condition. The usual acne medications don’t work with rosacea as it is primarily inflammatory. So acne medications such as Retin-A or Accutane don’t help at all. The reason is that Rosacea is aggravated by the sun and certain foods, rather than hormonal imbalances. A complete reddening of the face, called flushing, is common.

Again, the biggest reason flushing occurs is from sun exposure. The next biggest reason is emotional stress. Hot weather in general also aggravates rosacea. So the first thing to do is to always protect yourself from the sun and heat and learn to stay calm in stressful situations.

If you decide you need medical treatment for your rosacea, anti-inflammatory antibiotics taken either topically or by mouth are available by prescription. Or you can discuss any of the new topical treatments with your dermatologist.

Your dermatologist can now select from the following creams and ointments:

• Avar


• Azelex & Finacea (azelaic acid)


• Clenia


• Cleocin & Clindamax (clindamycin)


• Klaron


• Metrocream


• Metrogel


• Nicomide (nicotinic acid)


• Noritate (metronidazole)



• Ovace


• Plexion


• Rosenil (all forms of sulfa)


• Rosula


• Rozac

Whether you decide to manage your rosacea with lifestyle changes and avoidance of triggers, anti-inflammatory antibiotics or topical treatments is up to you. But at least you now know that there are many options available to treat rosacea.