If you are fair-skinned, experience persistent flushing, have bumps or enlarged blood vessels on the cheeks, nose, forehead, ears, and/or chin, as well as skin thickening and dryness in the affected areas, chances are you may have rosacea. Rosacea is one of the more common skin conditions that we see at Southern Surgical Arts, with more than 16 million Americans currently affected.Rosacea is a challenging condition as its cause is not yet completely understood. We do know that fair-skinned people are more likely to be affected, and that it can occur at any time but is more likely to be seen in middle age. The condition tends to wax and wane in the early stages, but the symptoms can become more persistent as time goes by. Rosacea is most common in women, but we tend to see the more severe symptoms more commonly in men, such as swelling and lumpiness of the nose.
Another factor that makes treating rosacea a challenge to treat is that many skin treatments and products can be irritating to the skin of rosacea sufferers. For example, we would never recommend a chemical peel to someone with rosacea. It would simply be too irritating to the skin and might cause a flare-up of symptoms.
The good news is that there is an excellent treatment available at Southern Surgical Arts to help minimize the look of rosacea flushing and improve skin texture—the Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) treatment.
We can treat the inflammation, broken blood vessels and inflammation characteristic of rosacea with IPL. An IPL treatment consists of a series of quick flashes of very bright light that breaks down the problem vessels and triggers the body’s natural healing response to remove them. The aesthetician can precisely control the amount of light and the speed of its delivery to suit the needs of your rosacea symptoms.
One of the most important factors in satisfaction with rosacea treatments is to keep your expectations realistic. Unfortunately, there is no cure or perfect remedy for rosacea yet. IPL offers comfortable, gentle, and significant results without irritating the skin or triggering flare-ups.
While IPL cannot erase all of the effects of rosacea or prevent them from coming back, the results do tend to be long-lasting, and can be repeated over time if necessary for maintenance. Our patients have been very satisfied with the improvements to the look and feel of their skin, especially the reduced redness and blotchiness.
If you would like to learn more about IPL for rosacea, please call Southern Surgical Arts at 423-266-3331. Our aestheticians will be happy to answer your questions and get you started on the road to more beautiful skin!
