Help with rosacea!

Dr. Irwin
September 26, 2009
Dear Dr.Irwin, I have read that the following items are good to use for the rosacea I have; A cleanser containing alpha lipoic acid, a high potency alpha lipoic acid lotion for the face and neck and an alpha lipoic eye product with DMAE and vitamin c ester. I currently use cetaphil as my cleanser and cetaphil daily facial moisturizer, spf 15. I am very confused with all the products that are available. I also use evoclin foam in the morning and finacea cream in the evening. These do seem to take away the reddness however, they are not very long lasting. If the first 3 items I mentioned are the correct things to use, I was wondering where they could be purchased. I read your article on rosacea and noticed that you did not mention these products. Any advice you could offer would be appreciated. Thank you very much. Mary

Dear Mary –

There isn’t any good evidence that the alpha lipoic products work any better than what you already have for rosacea.  And, they tend to be expensive.  You didn’t mention your age or how long you’ve had the rosacea. In general, the prescription medications and any dietary changes you’ve made to avoid your triggers, help most with the bumpy, acne like part of rosacea.  They also help to prevent the progession of the disease but only occasionally do they help with flushing or general redness.  Especially if you’ve already been using your presciptions for 2-3 months.

You might talk to your doctor about a low dose of doxycicline or minocycline to see if that helps to control it better.  The IPL  laser cousins are very helpful for flushing and general redness not controlled by medication.  You may want to consider those as well.  Dr. I

Dr. Brandith Irwin, MD

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Hi, I’m Dr. Irwin. I believe that consumers deserve a medically trained and unbiased skin care advocate.

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