The Early Stages of Rosacea

The earliest recognizable stage of rosacea is called pre-rosacea. That blush of embarrassment that may pop up at an inopportune moment. The classic symptoms of pre-rosacea are patchy diffuse redness or flushing and inflammation, particularly on the cheeks, nose, forehead, and around the mouth. Pre-rosacea symptoms typically appear between the ages of 30 and 50 and may affect more women than men. Because the symptoms emerge slowly, rosacea may initially be mistaken for sunburn, leading to a delay in treatment.

Although rosacea may first appear as early as the teen years, rosacea most frequently begins when sufferers enter their 30s, 40s or 50s as a flushing or transient redness on the cheeks or nose, and in some cases the chin or forehead. In this earliest stage, some sufferers may report stinging or burning sensations, including the feeling of dry or tight skin.

The signs and symptoms at this stage of rosacea include frequent episodes of flushing and redness of the face and neck that come and go. Many things can trigger a flushing episode, including exposure to the sun, emotional stress, alcohol, spicy foods, exercise, cold wind, hot foods and beverages, and hot baths. What causes flushing in one person may not cause a problem in another.

Flushing usually occurs when the body becomes fatigued and/or stressed which stimulates the sympathetic nervous system. The key to this is the autonomic nervous system (more specifically, the sympathetic postganglionic efferent nerves). Any activation of these nerves causes vasoconstriction of "body blood vessels" -- except in the "facial blush/flush areas" where it induces potent vasodilatation or flushing with the resulting "rosacea flush".

The early signs and symptoms of rosacea may also occur as a result of products used to treat other skin conditions such as acne. As adults, when we get acne we have a tendency to treat it the same way we did as teenagers – our old acne over the counter cream or lotion packed with high concentrations of benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid and sometimes even topical vitamin A products.

As our skin ages we find that the skin doesn't respond the same way to these acne products as it did when we were younger. The result is red blotchy areas, more breakouts; the facial skin may react by becoming oilier or dryer with increased skin sensitivity. In trying to control this, we apply even more and stronger treatments to our skin, but instead of seeing an improvement; we actually see more damage and skin-related issues as the skin creates more oil to protect it from the damage and abuse of these harsh chemicals. Thus creating a vicious cycle of over-medicating the skin causing increased facial redness, clogged pores and skin irritation.