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Persistent Redness- What Is This And How Can I Treat It?

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(@rah502)

Posted : 09/28/2013 9:17 am

A bit of background: I'm a 21 year old girl, suffered from acne as a teenager which was worst on my back, chest and chin, some on forehead but very mild/non-existent on my cheeks. Since going on accutane 3 years ago it mostly cleared up but I've been left with red, blotchy skin on my chin, nose and forehead which doesn't seem to fade. (I have much worse scars elsewhere but that's a separate issue...)

It's easily covered by make-up, more noticeable in some lights, and some days seems worse than others- is this definitely post-acne marks that will eventually fade or could it be rosacea or something more permanent? I've tried mild glycolic peels with little effect so can anyone recommend anything to help? I'm also very fair skinned could this be why the redness is more noticeable?

(These pictures were taken about 2 months ago, I'd just stopped taking yasmin contraceptive pill...stupid decision...the more prominent red marks in the pictures were from recent spots but I'm referring more to the general pinkness/blotchiness of my skin in some places. At the moment my skin is much worse sad.png so now need to start treatment again and strongly considering dianette. So any advice on how to stop more red marks appearing and lasting in the first place would also be helpful!)

Thanks!

Oh, and I live in the UK, so products available here would obviously be more useful smile.png

 

 

 

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(@green-gables)

Posted : 09/28/2013 11:46 am

The actual red "spots" will fade with time.

The blotchiness will not fade. This is because the problem is not in the skin, but in the veins. The redness results from broken capillaries and venous insufficiency that commonly occurs with Accutane. Some refer to this as accutane-induced rosacea, and some don't, but either way, it's a vein problem that only goes away with extensive laser treatments.

Even if you can't see individual veins yet, the general diffuse redness is from blood flow issues in the skin.

The blotchiness will be lighter or darker at different points. You may notice that when you first get up after a nap, for example (assuming you have been sleeping on your back and not applying pressure to the face), that the skin will be a little lighter. But once you start moving around (and your blood starts flowing), the blotchiness will increase.

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(@rah502)

Posted : 09/28/2013 11:55 am

Thanks for the response. So I'm stuck with this for life? sad.png Is there nothing I can do about it? I hate having to cover my face in foundation and concealer just so I can leave the house even when I have no spots sad.png

Edit: if my memory serves me right, I had this redness years before ever taking accutane so I don't think it's purely accutane induced?

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(@green-gables)

Posted : 09/28/2013 12:03 pm

Thanks for the response. So I'm stuck with this for life? sad.png Is there nothing I can do about it? I hate having to cover my face in foundation and concealer just so I can leave the house even when I have no spots sad.png

Only real "cure" is laser.

I have had some laser treatments for this myself, but basically ran out of money. You need a few thousand dollars or more worth of treatments to really see results. The first 3-4 and you barely notice a difference.

Sorry, I know it sucks.

There are some lotions out there that temporarily reduce the redness. Niacinamide is one ingredient. I use the CeraVe AM lotion which has that in it. Zinc oxide is another ingredient that can help.

I would not recommend prescription Finacea / Skinoren (azelaic acid). It is marketed for redness, however what it does is reduce the pigmentation of your skin. So it can help fade red SPOTS, but obviously it won't touch your veins, so it actually makes the veiny areas look worse because it depigments the skin around it. So get it for spots if you like, but don't apply it to your whole face.

Also there is Clinique Redness Solutions makeup, which uses a green tinted foundation. This is a common trick with makeup artists, because green is opposite red on the color wheel, putting a little green-tint foundation tricks your eyes into not seeing the red.

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(@rah502)

Posted : 09/28/2013 12:11 pm

How many laser treatments did you have and how much improvement did you see? It's not something I can afford at the moment but would consider it in future.

My current makeup is very good at covering it, people always act surprised if I say I have bad skin because you can't see any redness underneath the foundation I wear...but this only makes me more self-conscious about taking it off in front of anyone. I think it must be true about it being veins not the skin itself though because when I scrub make up off/have a hot shower it looks a lot worse, and generally looks ok in the morning. I've spent so long thinking it was just red marks from acne not rosacea!

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(@green-gables)

Posted : 09/28/2013 12:29 pm

It doesn't need to be purely Accutane-induced, typically some people have a predisposition towards the capillary problem, and Accutane often makes it worse. You can definitely have it without ever touching Accutane.

At this point I've had about 9 treatments of one laser and 4 treatments of another type, and if I look at a before and after of myself, the only real difference I can see is on my forehead...which wasn't even that red...like you it was on the nose, cheeks, and chin. And those spots look the same in the pics.

Here is the problem. Lasers basically use controlled damage. The hope is that by controlling the damage, your body will still be able to heal "better" than it was before,

With that in mind, you have two types of lasers, those that actually target veins, and those that just blast the entire layer where the veins are located.

Problem with #1, is that with this redness, the veins are so small that the targeted laser can't really find the vein, and will just hit the skin around it.

Problem with #2, is that you can't just blast your skin over and over, because it is damage, and so you if you blast it to the point where all the little veins disappear, you also get bad side effects such as fat loss or skin wrinkling. Because you damaged EVERYTHING in those deeper layers, not just the veins.

Strangely enough, it is easier to correct big scars or really big veins than this type of redness.

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(@rah502)

Posted : 09/28/2013 12:45 pm

So sounds like laser treatments aren't worth the money then :(What about controlling it rather than curing it?

And p.s. if anyone in the UK reads this do you know if it's possible to get any treatment on the NHS??

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(@strange-individual)

Posted : 09/28/2013 3:54 pm

you are very pretty though. i honestly see nothing wrong with how you look. those marks look kinda as if they may fade over time, because i noticed some of my red marks faded with time. but if it becomes such a hugh issue were nothing gets better, then i also would recommend laser treatment.(but only if you get acne scarring).

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(@andrewbleah)

Posted : 09/30/2013 12:32 pm

So sounds like laser treatments aren't worth the money then sad.pngWhat about controlling it rather than curing it?

And p.s. if anyone in the UK reads this do you know if it's possible to get any treatment on the NHS??

Some laser treatment.

My point is some people say that IPL is good for the redness , some people disagree.

Gold strandart for the redness is V-beam.

This laser and redness is like accutane and acne.

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(@healingscars)

Posted : 11/04/2013 7:16 pm

Hi, I have the same problem- please look at my gallery:

Mine is much worse though- although nothing compared to the acne I used to deal wtih

I'm also interested in solutions- but only topical solutions.

Lasers aren't worth it in my opinion.

The only things that work are sunscreen and exfoliation. But I'm wondering what kinds of combinations of AHA, BHAs and retinoids are even worth it.

I've also watched DermTV

 

 

What do you think about Dr Shultz? I'm hesitant.. I think he knows what he's talking about...but I also think he's trying to sell....

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