Aa
Rosacea
I am almost 12 weeks post SOC, I will do blood tests week from now and hope that all will be good.
Unfortunately the redness on my face (the T zone) that begun during treatement had not gone yet and both I and my drm doc tend to believe it won't go away, recentrly my derm doc said this is Rosacea.
So now I am on the journey to fins the best avaliable medications, treatement and tips how to treat or to maintain my face with Rosacea.
Could anyone help me with some advice ? I think it is known that Resacea sometimes comes with HCV or with the treatmebt. I would be happy to have any recomendation for any good forum like that one that can help me with the Rosacea.
Today I use Rozex Gel 1% which looks fair for maintenance but does not eliminate the redness, sometime I use Elidel for 102 days, I am affraid to use Elidel because I heard 2 docs telling it can cause cancer, but Elidel evidently remove the redness from the face.
Any advice from the lovely people here in this forum will be deeply appericiated.
Thank you,
Jack
Unfortunately the redness on my face (the T zone) that begun during treatement had not gone yet and both I and my drm doc tend to believe it won't go away, recentrly my derm doc said this is Rosacea.
So now I am on the journey to fins the best avaliable medications, treatement and tips how to treat or to maintain my face with Rosacea.
Could anyone help me with some advice ? I think it is known that Resacea sometimes comes with HCV or with the treatmebt. I would be happy to have any recomendation for any good forum like that one that can help me with the Rosacea.
Today I use Rozex Gel 1% which looks fair for maintenance but does not eliminate the redness, sometime I use Elidel for 102 days, I am affraid to use Elidel because I heard 2 docs telling it can cause cancer, but Elidel evidently remove the redness from the face.
Any advice from the lovely people here in this forum will be deeply appericiated.
Thank you,
Jack
I have to heat my back from time to time because of an injury, I noticed that it makes me looks very sunburned, do you have any advice ?
Thank you,
Jack
Thank you,
Jack
Tetracycline is an oral antibiotic sometimes used to clear up the acne aspect of acne rosacea which some have and some don't.
I see this is antibiotic, never hearf of, I will ask my dermatolog.
thank you,
Jack
thank you,
Jack
Heres a tip for shaving your face...i was doing this for years ...i buzz my hair with a good set of clippers an i also use it on my face...you get the 5 oclock shadow without the irritation....but in the last year ive finally gave the phillps rotary razor and i love the machine....try the clippers...works good on rash
I had rosacea before soc and still have it occasionally on my cheeks and nose. I take tetracycline 500mg/day for about aweek and it clears up. lbl
Near the end of tx and for some time, my face would get raw and painful for example on a very cold, windy day when walking outside. At one point it got so raw that I was told to stop using water when washing my face since water ironically can be an irritant to inflamed rosacea skin. Fortunately, you can use Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser without water. It was at that time that I was allowed to use topical steroid for about week to calm things down and then went to some of the other drugs mentioned. But most of the time, no pain, just redness, irriation, and some minor erruptions etc.
Does the irritation come with pain in your case ? I heard it can be painfull, It is not in my case; just concern if it might progress to that situation ?
Shaving was a big rosacea issue with me. I tried everything including letting my beard grow but that sometimes made it worse, although in my case I had some psoriasis layered with the rosacea and some seb derm thrown in so it always wasn't clear what was irrupting. BTW the layering of these three skin conditions is not that uncommon.
Best solution for me was frequent use of the Panasonic wet/dry electric razor. Sometimes I used it wet, sometimes I found dry better. The key ironically was to use it 3-5 times a day. That way the beard never got a chance to grow and therefore even though there were more passes with the razor, there was significantly less irritation because with the beard so short it didn't irritate much more than running your hand across your face. Conversely, it I let my beard grow for two days then the irritation was greater and eruptions more likely. Not as much a problem these days but still something I have to keep on top of. Another solution if you dont mind having the "second/third day" look is to use one of the beard trimmers instead of a razor. That works for me now but if I remember correctly it wasn't the best solution when I was just coming off treatment and my face was very sensitive. You really have to experiment. Best normal razor for trimming, etc, that I've found is the Gillete disposable Good News Double blade. All the others didn't work. As to shave cream on the wet setting, I used something hypoallegenic or sometimes just the Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser.
Best solution for me was frequent use of the Panasonic wet/dry electric razor. Sometimes I used it wet, sometimes I found dry better. The key ironically was to use it 3-5 times a day. That way the beard never got a chance to grow and therefore even though there were more passes with the razor, there was significantly less irritation because with the beard so short it didn't irritate much more than running your hand across your face. Conversely, it I let my beard grow for two days then the irritation was greater and eruptions more likely. Not as much a problem these days but still something I have to keep on top of. Another solution if you dont mind having the "second/third day" look is to use one of the beard trimmers instead of a razor. That works for me now but if I remember correctly it wasn't the best solution when I was just coming off treatment and my face was very sensitive. You really have to experiment. Best normal razor for trimming, etc, that I've found is the Gillete disposable Good News Double blade. All the others didn't work. As to shave cream on the wet setting, I used something hypoallegenic or sometimes just the Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser.
Did you find it helpfull to shave with Electric machine rather then by razor ?
Jack
Jack
Thank you.
Your answers, as always, are very interesting and very helpfull.
Happy weekend, Jack
Your answers, as always, are very interesting and very helpfull.
Happy weekend, Jack
I see you dug up an old '08 post. Could of saved me some time if I had seen it before as much of this post is a repeat :) That post was two years post. Now it's almost three, not "two" as stated above. Time flies when you're having fun with the interferon. LOL.
Hi Jack,
The exact same thing happened to me at about the same time in the post tx cycle. The good news is that the rosacea will get better. The bad news is that it could take some time, at least if it follows the pattern it did with me. Rosaea has a lot of "triggers". Some are shared by most, some are unique to the individual. You will find yours soon enough.
Rosacea skin can be very sensitive and fragile skin. It's affected by both very hot and very cold weather. When it got very cold I had to cover my face with a scarf. When it got very hot I tried to seek out air conditioning.
The worst was a sauna or steam bath. I'll probably never be able to use either of those again for more then a few minutes. Next to sauna or steam is the sun. You have to wear sun block every time you go out, even if you don't see the sun. Go to the "Blue Lizard" site and check out "Blue Lizard Baby". That's one of the good ones.You can also check out the Solibar (I think) web site for other sunblocks and sun products. Just try to avoid anything with chemicals in it.
Other common triggers are red wine, caffeine, exercise, sweating and certain foods. You can check some of the rosacea sites for a more complete list.
Cosmetics and even soap and many moisturizes can irritate the rosacea skin. I switched to the Cetaphil products like the Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser and their Cream Moisturizer which had the least chemicals. Always treat your face like a baby. Never rub hard with a towel. Simply pat dry. Don't use very hot or cold water. Lukewarm seems best.
As to the pharmacological, It's great that Elidel is working for you. If it brings down your redness, use it. Every derm I spoke to uses it and downplays the black box warnings. I still use it every week but less for rosacea and more for some sporadic bouts of seb derm.
Here's the basic regimen that works for me after much trial and error and two handfulls of derms. I don't do this anymore daily unless I have a flare. Sometimes now I will go for weeks using nothing but when things were bad, or I had a flare, I would do it daily.
Wash face gently in morning with Cetaphil gentle cleanser. Apply some sort of antiboitic gel or solution. Then Sodium Sulfacetamide 10% and Sulfur 5% lotion to affected areas. Elidel if any scaling. Then use Cetaphil mosturizer and sun block.
In the evening, wash face with Cetaphil again, substitute Metrogel for the Sodium Sulfacetamide, but no moisturizer.
Variations included antibotic solution in morning and then on alternate evenings use Metrogel and Sodium product. Use Elidel only when scaling or peeling. Later at times, I'd simply mix the drugs on my palm like an artists palette with a dab of metrogel, a little Sodum and Elidel optional. Mix it with your finger and apply all at once. Sometimes once a day, sometimes twice. After awhile you get a feel what works but the Sodium seem the best overall for me as Metrogel could sometimes irritate as well as Elidel, but once I got it under control the Metrogel and Elidel were good for maintenance. Experiment. Experiment.
You should also know that there are various laser treatments -- or more accurately pulsed light treatments, but IMO way to early for you to consider that. In fact, the main thing you need now is time away from the tx drugs. The derms may not understand this and could overreact and over treat. It was caused by the interferon and the more time away from the interferon the better things will get. They wanted to put me on antibiotics for some of the breakouts, but I was able to get by without them.
I'm now two years post treatment and can now drink red wine, coffee and go to the gym and work out vigorously. I couldn't do any of those things without a flare-up for the first 6-12 months after treatment. I can handle a little sun but my days of sun bathing are very much over and I have to use a block and/or hat on sunny days. Steam bath and sauna are still out except for a very short exposure.
Forgot to mention topical steroids. They can be very bad for the face and even end up making things worse with a condition called steroid rosacea. Even OTC Hydrocortisone can potentially caused this. So only use these topicals under the direct supervision of a derm and in fact some derms won't use them at all. Personally, I will use a topical steroid VERY occasionally to bring down a flare. Maybe for a day or two but then swtich right back to the Elidel or Sodium or Metrogel or some combo. And I repeat, at least according to my derms, do not be afraid to use Elidel if it works for you as it has many of the same benefits of a topical steroid without the rebound or potential for steroid rosacea.
Ive probably left a lot out, but I've posted a lot on this topic in the past and maybe you can do a search.
Today, at least most days, no one really would know I have rosacea as long as I keep on top of things. Hopefully yours will get better with time but as stated it could be a gradual process and you have to think months or perhaps even a year or bit more.
All the best,
-- Jim
The exact same thing happened to me at about the same time in the post tx cycle. The good news is that the rosacea will get better. The bad news is that it could take some time, at least if it follows the pattern it did with me. Rosaea has a lot of "triggers". Some are shared by most, some are unique to the individual. You will find yours soon enough.
Rosacea skin can be very sensitive and fragile skin. It's affected by both very hot and very cold weather. When it got very cold I had to cover my face with a scarf. When it got very hot I tried to seek out air conditioning.
The worst was a sauna or steam bath. I'll probably never be able to use either of those again for more then a few minutes. Next to sauna or steam is the sun. You have to wear sun block every time you go out, even if you don't see the sun. Go to the "Blue Lizard" site and check out "Blue Lizard Baby". That's one of the good ones.You can also check out the Solibar (I think) web site for other sunblocks and sun products. Just try to avoid anything with chemicals in it.
Other common triggers are red wine, caffeine, exercise, sweating and certain foods. You can check some of the rosacea sites for a more complete list.
Cosmetics and even soap and many moisturizes can irritate the rosacea skin. I switched to the Cetaphil products like the Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser and their Cream Moisturizer which had the least chemicals. Always treat your face like a baby. Never rub hard with a towel. Simply pat dry. Don't use very hot or cold water. Lukewarm seems best.
As to the pharmacological, It's great that Elidel is working for you. If it brings down your redness, use it. Every derm I spoke to uses it and downplays the black box warnings. I still use it every week but less for rosacea and more for some sporadic bouts of seb derm.
Here's the basic regimen that works for me after much trial and error and two handfulls of derms. I don't do this anymore daily unless I have a flare. Sometimes now I will go for weeks using nothing but when things were bad, or I had a flare, I would do it daily.
Wash face gently in morning with Cetaphil gentle cleanser. Apply some sort of antiboitic gel or solution. Then Sodium Sulfacetamide 10% and Sulfur 5% lotion to affected areas. Elidel if any scaling. Then use Cetaphil mosturizer and sun block.
In the evening, wash face with Cetaphil again, substitute Metrogel for the Sodium Sulfacetamide, but no moisturizer.
Variations included antibotic solution in morning and then on alternate evenings use Metrogel and Sodium product. Use Elidel only when scaling or peeling. Later at times, I'd simply mix the drugs on my palm like an artists palette with a dab of metrogel, a little Sodum and Elidel optional. Mix it with your finger and apply all at once. Sometimes once a day, sometimes twice. After awhile you get a feel what works but the Sodium seem the best overall for me as Metrogel could sometimes irritate as well as Elidel, but once I got it under control the Metrogel and Elidel were good for maintenance. Experiment. Experiment.
You should also know that there are various laser treatments -- or more accurately pulsed light treatments, but IMO way to early for you to consider that. In fact, the main thing you need now is time away from the tx drugs. The derms may not understand this and could overreact and over treat. It was caused by the interferon and the more time away from the interferon the better things will get. They wanted to put me on antibiotics for some of the breakouts, but I was able to get by without them.
I'm now two years post treatment and can now drink red wine, coffee and go to the gym and work out vigorously. I couldn't do any of those things without a flare-up for the first 6-12 months after treatment. I can handle a little sun but my days of sun bathing are very much over and I have to use a block and/or hat on sunny days. Steam bath and sauna are still out except for a very short exposure.
Forgot to mention topical steroids. They can be very bad for the face and even end up making things worse with a condition called steroid rosacea. Even OTC Hydrocortisone can potentially caused this. So only use these topicals under the direct supervision of a derm and in fact some derms won't use them at all. Personally, I will use a topical steroid VERY occasionally to bring down a flare. Maybe for a day or two but then swtich right back to the Elidel or Sodium or Metrogel or some combo. And I repeat, at least according to my derms, do not be afraid to use Elidel if it works for you as it has many of the same benefits of a topical steroid without the rebound or potential for steroid rosacea.
Ive probably left a lot out, but I've posted a lot on this topic in the past and maybe you can do a search.
Today, at least most days, no one really would know I have rosacea as long as I keep on top of things. Hopefully yours will get better with time but as stated it could be a gradual process and you have to think months or perhaps even a year or bit more.
All the best,
-- Jim
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