Thread: Rosacea and UV
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Old 03-29-2008, 08:34 AM   #4 (permalink)
AlecNYC
 
Join Date: Mar 29 2008
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Re: Rosacea and UV

Hey - yeah there are treatments. Metronidazole is a common one. So is tetracycline (which makes someone photosensitive) and some topical steroids (not long term - and they thin the skin so prob not good to tan w/ these. besides, they prevent 1/2 the tanning process anyway) -- what they are on depends on the type of rosacea and severity.

You read that UV helps rosacea? Everything I read says that, for most rosacea patients, UV tends to aggravate it (google "tanning and rosacea),. There is therapy called PUVA which includes psoralens (chemicals that absorb the light) with UVA, but this is for eczema and psoriasis -- not rosacea.

Honestly, I'm surprised they even want to tan w/ rosacea. IMO, they should be able to tan w/ sunblock on their nose & areas of sensitivity (in low power beds to see how they react first) - and then go from there. I think, even w/ rosacea, if you start very slow, you can get a tan - it's just very hard to get an even tan w/o aggrivating the issue.
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