laser treatment for rosacea

　　Laser treatment for rosacea is a procedure used to treat certain effects of rosacea. It is quickly becoming the most common treatment for rosacea. There are a few signs, that if done properly, laser treatment can erradicate for years.

　　Dilated Blood Vessels

　　Rhinophyma

　　Persistent Redness

　　These symptoms begin to decrease almost immediately after the first laser treatment for rosacea, with two treatment decreasing these symptoms 40% to 60%.

　　Laser treatment for rosacea work my taking a laser over the affected area, and using that to remove the top layer of skin. This will remove a large area where the blood has become trapped near the surface. Laser treatment for rosacea is also helpful in treating the pimples associated with rosacea.

　　This Journal feature begins with a case vignette highlighting a common clinical problem. Evidence supporting various strategies is then presented, followed by a review of formal guidelines, when they exist. The article ends with the author's clinical recommendations.

　　A 47-year-old white woman reports facial redness and flushing. Her eyes are itchy and irritated. She thinks she may have rosacea and is worried that she will have a "whiskey nose." On examination, multiple erythematous papules, pustules, and telangiectasias are observed on a background of erythema of the central portion of her face. How should her case be managed?

　　The Clinical Problem

　　A constellation of clinical symptoms and signs are included under the broad rubric of rosacea. These consist of facial flushing, the appearance of telangiectatic vessels and persistent redness of the face, eruption of inflammatory papules and pustules on the central facial convexities, and hypertrophy of the sebaceous glands of the nose, with fibrosis (rhinophyma).1 Ocular changes are present in more than 50 percent of patients and range from mild dryness and irritation with blepharitis and conjunctivitis (common symptoms) to sight-threatening keratitis (rare).2 Patients with rosacea may report increased sensitivity of the facial skin3 and may have dry, flaking facial dermatitis, edema of the upper face,4 or persistent granulomatous papulonodules.5 There is often an overlapping of clinical features, but in the majority of patients, a particular manifestation of rosacea dominates the clinical picture. As a useful approach to the guidance of therapy, the disease can thus be classified into four subtypes ― erythematotelangiectatic (subtype 1), papulopustular (2), phymatous (3), and ocular (4)6 ― with the severity of each subtype graded as 1 (mild), 2 (moderate), or 3 (severe).7 The psychological, social, and occupational effects of the disease on the patient should also be assessed and factored into treatment decisions.