There is no cure for rosacea, but treatment can help make your skin look and feel better. Your doctor may suggest antibiotic medicines that you apply directly on your skin or take in a pill. It may take several weeks or months for your skin to start looking better.
Other skin treatments may include:
- Gels to help your skin look less red.
- Electrosurgery or laser surgery to reduce the appearance of small red lines on your skin.
- If your nose is bumpy and swollen, you may be able to have some extra skin tissue taken off to make it smaller.
Treatments for eye problems may include:
- Medicines, such as steroid eye drops.
- Cleaning your eyelids to reduce infections. Your doctor may recommend scrubbing your eyelids gently with watered-down baby shampoo or an eyelid cleaner and then applying a warm (but not hot) compress a few times a day.
Be sure to talk about treatments and possible side effects with your doctor.
Diagnosing and treating rosacea requires a team effort involving you and health care professionals. These may include dermatologists, who treat skin problems.
Health care professionals can prescribe or recommend treatments to help you manage your rosacea, but there are also some things you can try that may reduce your symptoms. Here are some things that may help you:
- Keep a written record of when flares, or periods of worse symptoms, occur. This may help you and your doctors figure out what irritates your skin.
- Use sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher every day, especially if sun irritates your skin. Use a sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB rays, two types of ultraviolet rays that can harm your skin.
- Use a mild lubricant on your face if it helps, but avoid any products that irritate your skin.
- Green-tinted makeup may help conceal skin redness.
- Talk to a doctor if you feel sad or have other signs of depression. Some people with rosacea feel bad because of the way their skin looks and may need treatment for depression.
Some things can make your rosacea become worse, or flare, but what seems to trigger a flare varies from person to person. Although these factors have not been well-researched, some people say these things make their rosacea worse:
- Heat, including hot baths.
- Exercise.
- Sunlight.
- Wind.
- Very cold temperatures.
- Hot or spicy foods and drinks.
- Alcohol.
- Menopause.
- Emotional Stress.
- Long-term use of steroids on the skin.
- Bacteria.