Acne Rosacea Treatment

It is common for teenagers to suffer from acne, but in most cases they will grow out of it in time. For many adults, though, the condition known as acne rosacea (or just rosacea) may occur on their face, making them think they have gone back to their teenage years and are once again suffering from acne.

What is acne rosacea?

So what exactly is acne rosacea? While it may seem like acne, it is actually a totally different skin condition. The common symptoms of rosacea include facial skin that is red or pink, often in patches. Underneath the skin you will see small blood vessels that appear broken, and the eyes may even appear slightly irritated or pink. The skin itself will also have small red bumps that are easy to see and may be tender to the touch. It’s also not unusual for the skin to have a number of red cysts develop as well. These cysts can also be painful to the touch and become irritated quite easily.

In mild cases of rosacea, treatment may not be required beyond simply keeping the face clean and free of bacteria as much as possible. Cases that are more severe or that are resistant to such mild treatment may require a stronger approach using one of the many acne rosacea treatment medicines now available in the marketplace.

What are the most common acne rosacea treatment options?

A number of different acne rosacea treatment choices are available, both as over the counter medications and prescription medications or treatments. In most cases, if the normal anti-acne over the counter treatments are not proving to be effective against rosacea, your doctor will fairly quickly move you on to another type of acne rosacea treatment that is available by prescription rather than over the counter.

Here are some examples of the types of acne rosacea treatment choices your doctor might recommend:

Topical antibiotic cream - Any number of topical antibiotic creams have proven to be effective against rosacea, including metronidazole, erythromycin, clindamycin, and azelaic acid. Some patients do best when using a combination of these antibiotics each day.

Antibiotic pills - A simple oral antibiotic pill can often be an effective acne rosacea treatment as well. Commonly used medicines include tetracycline, amoxicillin, doxycycline, and minocycline.

Light therapy - This is one of the latest breakthroughs in acne rosacea treatment, and is proving quite effective for some patients. Lasers and/or intense light pulses are the most common kinds of light therapy; they are generally used during a series of treatments that occur every three to six weeks or so.

Choosing the right acne rosacea treatment

So how should you decide on the right acne rosacea treatment? The answer to that question depends very much on how severe your rosacea is and how much it is bothering you. Many people with mild cases hardly even notice the condition, and for them the best acne rosacea treatment is simply to keep their skin clean using a mild face wash.

If your rosacea is more severe then your best approach is to visit with your doctor or dermatologist for a professional evaluation. Based on this evaluation, he or she will recommend an appropriate treatment regimen for you to begin. And if that initial regimen is not entirely effective you will be able to move to other treatments easily until it gets under control.