Rosacea (pronounced rose-ay-shah) is a skin condition that affects the face, mostly where people flush. It usually begins with redness on the cheeks, nose, chin or forehead and if left untreated can slowly worsen to include other symptoms such as:

Small visible blood vessels on the face.
Bumps or pimples on the face.
Watery or irritated eyes.
Thickening of the skin around the nose

Rosacea is very common, affecting up to 1 in 10 people, usually fair skinned, of North West European descent. In fact, in Britain and Ireland it is nicknamed “the curse of the Celts”. It is more likely to affect women than men and although it can appear at any age, it is more likely to occur between the ages of 30 and 60. Although most of these cases are mild, it may take a few tries to find medication that controls an individual’s condition and it can be very distressing to have a persistant facial condition.

But most cases of Rosacea CAN BE controlled through medication, and it is important to see a dermatologist at the first suggestion of unusual redness.

The Main Symptoms of Rosacea

Rosacea is sometimes called ‘acne rosacea’ as it can look similar to acne. However, it is a different condition to acne. Symptoms of rosacea include one or more of the following:

Frequent flushing of the face, similar to blushing. This is often the first symptom and may be the only symptom for months or years before anything else develops.
Redness of parts of the face. This be anything from permanently rosy looking cheeks to a deep dark flushed red that looks similar to sunburn.
Small lumpy red spots on the face. These might be red bumps, or cysts that look like acne. These may be occasional in some cases, but remain in others unless treated.
Telangiectasia on the face. These are tiny blood vessels under the skin which you can see and can become quite prominent on the face.
Eye symptoms (also called ocular rosacea) occur in about half of cases, but are often mild. They can include:

A feeling of something in the eye
Burning, stinging or itchy eyes
Dryness
Sensitivity to light
Eyelid problems such as cysts, styes or eyelid inflammation (blepharitis)
Inflammation and infection of the cornea (the front of the eye) is an uncommon but serious complication that can affect vision. See a doctor urgently if you develop eye pain or visual problems.

Thickening of the skin occurs in some cases. The most well known example of this is called a rhinophyma (a bulbous, bumpy nose). This is uncommon.

The symptoms are usually just on the central parts of the face – on the cheeks, forehead, nose, around the mouth and chin. Skin on other parts of the head is sometimes affected. Rarely, skin on the arms or back is affected. Telangiectasia occurs in severe rosacea and these are when the blood vessels dilate on the nose and cheeks. In many cases rosacea does not become as severe as this.

The symptoms can vary from case to case. For example:

Some people only ever get one or two of the symptoms. These may be just mild and not too troublesome. For example, some people just have facial flushing and/or mild redness of the face and never develop any other symptoms.
Some people may develop several symptoms, but one symptom may dominate.
Spots are a prominent feature in some cases, but not all.
Rhinophyma (thickening of the skin around the nose) is uncommon, but may occur even without any other symptoms.
Eye symptoms occur in some people before any skin symptoms develop.

In short, the development and severity of symptoms can vary greatly.