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Understanding Rosacea and How to Manage It
Published 24th November 2025
min read
Expert Reviewed By
Rosacea is one of the most common causes of facial redness, yet many people don’t realise they have it. If your skin easily, feels sensitive or stays persistently red across the cheeks, nose or forehead, you may be .
rosacea and its is the first step to it well. While there’s no cure, there are highly effective ways to calm symptoms and reduce flare-ups, such as and advanced laser for rosacea.
This guide walks you through everything you need to know about rosacea: what it is, who gets it, the main symptoms, how to manage triggers and the treatments that can help.
What is Rosacea, and Who Gets It?
is a chronic that mainly affects the face and is different from acne. It shows up as facial redness, bumps and pimples and can also cause around the eyes and eyelids. can affect the cheeks, forehead, chin and nose, and in some cases, the neck and chest. This condition more often in fair skin but can occur in any skin type and affect a wide age range. It is, however, most common in people over 30 and is seen more in women than men.
Yes, can affect any age group, including children and adolescents. The is more diagnosed, in adults but it can begin in the teen years or even younger.
Rosacea occurs across all skin tones and races. Rosacea like flushing and redness can be more in fair skin, but it affects all skin types. Symptoms such as and facial are more obvious in fair skin but appear in darker skin tones as or purplish changes. Even when redness is harder to see, such as burning, and are all still noticeable.
What are the Main Signs of Rosacea?
According to , it is estimated that affects about 1 in 20 people in the UK. of on the face can start with easy blushing. With time the central parts of the face can turn a deeper red, small blood vessels may become and bumps or pus-filled spots appear. Skin can feel hot or sensitive and some people get eye symptoms such as or blurred vision. In some men the oil glands on the nose can overgrow, and the nose can become and red, a change called . Common symptoms of rosacea include:
Some people have only one or two of these symptoms, while others have a . It varies widely in severity and presentation.
What Are the Types of Rosacea?
The types of rosacea can be grouped into three main patterns: redness, bumps and phyma. Ocular rosacea affects the eyes and causes red eyes, irritation and a gritty .
This includes several patterns of facial and blood .
Persistent/background redness
Persistent redness is always present on the face, the cheeks, chin, nose and . People may also experience sensitivity, burning, stinging or heat.
(transient redness)
Redness that comes and goes and is by heat, emotions, certain foods, or .
Telangiectasias
These are dilated blood that look like tiny red threads on the cheeks or nose.
These are inflammatory lesions that can resemble acne but without blackheads or whiteheads.
Papules
Red, bumps.
Pustules
Pus-filled bumps that may look similar to acne but occur in the context of rosacea and different treatment.
Phyma is the thickening or of facial skin that mostly affects the nose. Phymatous change includes thicker, more textured or enlarged skin. When this happens on the nose, it is called rhinophyma and is important to recognise as, although it is less common, the from other types of .
What Causes Rosacea, and What Triggers Flare-ups?
The exact cause of rosacea isn’t fully understood. Evidence points to a mix of factors, immune system changes and environmental influences. of rosacea vary from each individual person and often include alcohol, exercise, extreme temperatures, hot drinks, spicy foods and stress. People living with rosacea are also more to the sun, which is one of the biggest symptoms can .
There are several ideas about what causes rosacea on the face. A few key include:
For many suffering with the condition, there is no singular cause, as many of these often overlap. For more on rosacea, what causes it take a look at our article on the
How Can I Manage My Rosacea Triggers?
The goal of rosacea isn’t to get rid of it completely because there is no cure. These symptoms will recur at different rates and intensities. However, it helps to manage it in a way that doesn’t affect your day-to-day life and allows you to feel happy with your skin.
Identifying your personal triggers so you can avoid them is one of the best ways to reduce flare-ups. People with rosacea may have some unique for them, such as cosmetics, certain types of foods or . If you make a habit of keeping a small diary in your phone every time you feel yourself flushing, you might be able to identify some that you otherwise would have missed. vary from person to person, but common ones include:
If you’re unsure, keep a rosacea diary. Write down what you ate, drank or were to during a flare-up.
Practical steps to manage include using daily sun protection, hats and avoiding overheating. People with have sensitive skin, so they need to take extra care with sunscreen. Choose a minimum SPF 50 and opt for physical sunscreens rather than chemical sunscreens, as chemical can skin.
People with often have a compromised skin . Therefore, it’s important to daily to strengthen the skin barrier and keep it hydrated, which is going to have an effect on your skin.
Another way to manage rosacea is to avoid or scrubbing your face. Physical exfoliants, rough towels and harsh scrubbing make worse. So always pat your skin dry.
A simple routine is best for facial redness, and it helps to avoid layering many while using prescription .
Strong active like retinoids or acids should be added slowly with a patch test first to avoid reactions or flare-ups. It’s also best to avoid skincare that has irritating that can affect your rosacea, such as fragrance, alcohol and witch hazel.
The main between acne and is that acne presents with comedones, while has papules and without comedones. Rosacea tends to affect the central face where flushing occurs, while acne can be more widespread.
How is Rosacea Diagnosed?
is by how it looks. In most cases, a skin specialist can identify it just from examining the face and asking a few questions about and triggers. It’s important to assess along with your skin . Specific tests are rarely needed unless there’s uncertainty about another condition.
Although there is no cure for rosacea, it is very treatable. Many people are surprised to learn that is a lifelong . It goes through phases; sometimes it flares, and sometimes it settles and becomes much easier to manage.
It helps to set expectations early:
A good plan evolves with you and your lifestyle, supporting the skin through its calmer phases as well as its more moments.
What Treatments are Available for Rosacea?
often develops due to a mix of genetic and factors that no one can fully . Instead of focusing on the cause, it’s more productive to focus on how to manage it. There are rosacea treatment options that help bring this under control, laser treatments and medical-grade skincare that supports irritated and skin.
The best results often come from a combined approach. on your specific symptoms, this may include topical treatments, a personalised desensitisation plan and gentler laser therapies such as Laser Genesis to maintain your results.
Laser for rosacea can reduce facial redness and blood vessels. like Excel V+ work by the skin with a specific of light. Each wavelength is chosen because it is absorbed by a particular type of tissue. Certain wavelengths are absorbed more easily by the chromophores that the is aiming at. This means the treatment can focus on the or without affecting the surrounding skin.
also helps support rosacea treatment. These use ingredients delivered at strengths that can genuinely the skin . Many people with rosacea have a barrier, which means the skin reacts easily and loses moisture quickly. Medical-grade lines help repair and hydrate the skin, to fewer and calmer symptoms of rosacea. These formulas contain soothing ingredients, exosomes, antioxidants and barrier-supporting lipids that everyday shop-bought products cannot match. Some rosacea needs active treatment plans to help redcue inflammation, spots, . There are different types of suitable for different and types of .
Rosacea Treatment at Thames Skin Clinic
At , we are a doctor-led, award-winning skin health clinic in . Led by , a highly experienced doctor with over 20 years of practice, we can assess your skin and help you understand what the most effective might be for you. Dr Hemming has personal experience with rosacea, which gives her a unique into how to treat and support our with facial .
Our skin clinic offers proven options, such as medical-grade and powerful laser treatment for rosacea to deal with:
to book your consultation today, and we can begin a treatment plan designed specifically for you at Thames Skin Clinic in Twickenham. Let us help you calm redness, reduce flare-ups and healthy, skin.
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