April is Rosacea Awareness Month and many doctors have been posting information on their social media sites this month to help patients understand what Rosacea is and what they can prescribe for you. We, as a medical laser clinic, provide the key to removing the visual effects Rosacea causes or has left behind.

In Canada, over 3 million people suffer from Rosacea. It typically begins as a tendency to flush or blush easily. The skin is often very sensitive and may feel dry, rough or swollen. Rosacea most commonly appears in people between 30 to 60.

Rosacea Awareness Month may only be 30 days long, but if you have Rosacea, then you know it is a life-long struggle in coping with the effects that Rosacea has on your skin. Mild symptoms such as easy flushing and a few broken capillaries are annoying but tolerable, whereas intense symptoms such as skin sensitivity, stinging and burning, or broken vessels across the face, or pimples and pustules, are often more intolerable and can play havoc not only on the skin, but on your mental and emotional health as well.

While mild cases can be treated with a prescription medication (several options from your dermatologist), a quality moisturizer and proper sun protection, the more intense cases may need all of the above and a whole lot more. Active moisturizers such as ZO Rozatrol actually help to calm the skin as well as hydrate. We carry proper sunscreens that help to lower the temperature of the skin to prevent flushing. Vivier Hexam cleanser or ZO Hydrating Cleanser are ideal to prevent water loss and are specifically designed to be well tolerated by Rosacea skin.

But here’s the thing: medications, moisturizers and sunscreen will help to calm the skin and reduce flare-ups, but they won’t remove the redness if the capillaries are already broken. That is where we come in. Once the vessels are visible on the skin, the only way to remove them is through laser or light therapy. We are talking about lasers and BBL HERO or sometimes a combination of them.

After a proper assessment, we choose the best means to treat the visible vessels and reduce flushing. For most patients it can take approximately 3 - 6 treatments about a month apart to get the best results, along with proper home skincare, of course. Because Rosacea is something that you have for life, we also suggest 1 - 2 treatments every year to prevent accumulation of new vascularity.

On the plus side, it has been clinically proven that both BBL HERO and lasers stimulate collagen production. So, while treating the redness and vessels of Rosacea, there is the added benefit of anti-aging effects as well. In fact, many patients who don’t even have Rosacea will do exactly the same treatments just for the collagen stimulation benefits alone.

And keep in mind that those who suffer from Rosacea are lacking a proper moisture barrier, which prevents the skin from holding onto water. With new collagen being created, not only are we reducing the current vessels, but we are preventing a surge in new broken vessels because the skin will be more hydrated and therefore less sensitive and reactive.

If you have, or feel you may have Rosacea, the first step is to book your free consultation. It is important to determine what type of Rosacea you have as well as its severity. It is important to know that topical or oral medications will calm and help to prevent new flare-ups but understand that to clear up the damage that has already taken place, your medical laser treatments are the key to recovery.