Rosacea/facial flushing

[Chefzhat]

There was an older thread on this, but I thought I'd start another one.

I've got my rosacea under control finally - but I'm using a different medicine than what my derm gave me. My neighbor who is a pharmacutical rep saw my face and handed me two sample boxes of a topical cream called Elidel which is a topical antibiotic.

This stuff works wonderfully! It's a miracle! All the older drugs that my derm gave me only worked for a few weeks at a time, I've been using the Elidel for over 2 months now and I have skin that I'm proud of - so proud that I am not even wearing foundation anymore!

How's everyone else's face doing??

Debie

[lisas3575]

Hi Debie!

Mine is ok. I'm still using Metrogel, mostly because my skin is soooooo dry that I have to use gentle stuff on it. And my biggest problem isn't the bumps (I only get a few, occassionally), it's the red flush, which I don't think can really be helped. I had an enlightening moment a week ago-- I had a piece of chocolate and within 15 minutes my face was beet red. Looks like I've ID chocolate as a trigger. Is life still worth living? ;)

I did get and try the Jason Vitamin K Creme and it didn't seem to do anything for me... It's a pretty good moisturizer though.

[Chefzhat]

The elidel has almost completely eliminated my flushing - you might want to give it a try. But then again, if the metrogel is working why tinker??:) Unfortunately, metrogel never really worked so good for me. The only time I flush now is when I have teriyaki - I don't miss it too much.

How terrible that chocolate reacts for you!! Whatever will you do?

[Kristine]

Debie - Is Elidel by perscription or sold over the counter? I don't have rosacea, but I definitely have flushing issues. Would it be helpful just for redness/flushing?

[wallycat]

My rosacea is, for the most part OK with metrogel used on and off during the week.
I did read the Acne Cure book and tried some of the steps for 5 weeks. HOLY COW>..I got more acne with this derms. program than ever in my life!!
I'm bck to my old routine :rolleyes:

I have developed a weird (small) rash on the side of my neck that I thought was heat rash, but now think it may be a small flare up of eczema :( :( and my eye-lid/corner of eye is red on and off too...
maybe my cat allergies are getting worse :confused: :confused:

[Chefzhat]

Elidel is by prescription. It's been used for skin problems (dermititis, exzema) for a couple of years, and now doctors are trying it on rosacea. It might help with your flushing, it certainly did mine. Does your face burn when you are flushed?

[JLS]

I use Elidel too, with some good results, when in the past NOTHING at all has been working...(I have an extremely low tolerance to medications, facial cleansers and moisterizers.)

One thing I really don't like about it, is that I really cannot drink alchol while using it. Because Elidel prohibhts redness in the face, and alchol makes ones face red while consumming, I experience this really wierd sensation when I drink alchol (even 2-3 sips).

[Chefzhat]

JLS - how often do you apply Elidel to your face? Isn't that sensation funny - it's sort of like a hot compress for me. I avoid that by only applying the cream to my face at night before bed. Actually, I only use it 3 - 4 times per week now that I've got the redness/blotchiness under control.

Debie

[JLS]

Debie,

I really don't use it consistently! If I did, mostly likely I wouldn't be able to tolerate it anymore! The wierd thing is, that I could use it 1-3 x's a week, and still get the sensation. I believe it's too strong for me, but, it's the currently the only thing that works.

When I used protopic, I used to experience the samething, and additionally both a hot shower, and hot lights would have the same affect! :(

Oh...well...going to the Dermo this week....

[Valerie226]

Wow, I did not know there was a rosacea thread! I have been bothered by this for years, and my mother has it too. (Thanks for those genes, mom!)

Metrogel also comes in a cream form called ( what else) Metrocream. I could not use the gel, it irritated. there is also a stronger formulation with the same ingredient called Noritate. unfortunately it really did not seem to work for me. I take one erythromycin a day.

My trigger is caffeine. I am down to coffee 3/4 decaf 1/4 caff. It has made a big difference. my main issue was flushing. when I occasionally get a bump, clearasil works better than anything. yeah, I was told it didn't work but it does. works for my mother too. only on bumps. will not help flushing. And I am a maniac about sunscreen. I use estee lauder spf 30. It does not iritate my facial skin like some of the coppertone/banana boat types. And I wash with Cetaphil, never soap.

I guess I should have done a search to see if anyone had covered all this before, but now that it's typed, I'll do a search later.

[honeygirl1971]

Originally posted by wallycat
I have developed a weird (small) rash on the side of my neck that I thought was heat rash, but now think it may be a small flare up of eczema :( :( and my eye-lid/corner of eye is red on and off too...
maybe my cat allergies are getting worse :confused: :confused:

wallycat--something like this happened to me, and I finally realized that it was contact dermatitis from my conditioner! I know that sounds weird (you would think of it getting on your eyelids), but after trying some different creams from the dermotologist I finally switched conditioners and it went away.

Skin problems can be so darned frustrating. And they change all the time, and are different for every person, so it's hard to even get advice. My doc gave me metrogel and some other thing to try b/c she thinks I might be developing rosacea, but I've been afraid to try it b/c lately my skin's actually been pretty good, and so often those creams etc. from the derm actually give me acne flare-ups etc. So I haven't tried the samples. I'm actually using all OTC products right now, and I'm happier than I was on all the NUMEROUS Rx products I've tried. :rolleyes:

[JulieM]

I mentioned in the old thread that my DH was diagnosed with rosacea about 5 years ago. He didn't want to start a lifelong regimen of antibiotics so we researched natural remedies and designed a treatment from the book "Prescription for Nutritional Healing." He's taking a vitamin and herb mixture that cured him within weeks. If he doesn't take the supplements, he starts breaking out again in 3 days. He had a problem mostly with splotches, red bumps and dry scaly patches.

[HeidiD]

Debbie, I have had some good results using Elidel, too. I am 43 and use Elidel every other day and Kinerase on the days in between (Kinerase is an anti-aging lotion that my derm says is similar in effectiveness to Retin-A but much less irritating). I can't say that Elidel has made much of a dent in my seemingly permanent nose-and-cheeks redness, but it seems to keep break-outs away and gives my skin a smoother texture. I think I will have to do some kind of photoderm or laser treatment eventually to get rid of redness, but my dermatologist advised me to wait a bit as technology is improving all the time and she doesn't consider my rosacea to be that bad yet. I am going to stick with Elidel as Metrogel and Plexion did not do much for me. Rosacea is such an annoying puzzle.