Rosacea is a “chronic and progressive dermatosis characterized by erythema, telangiectasia, papules and pustules and potential hyperplasion over the central portion of the face” (Litt, 1997). This disorder has four subtypes erythematotelangiectatic, papulopustular, phymatous and occular (Guttman, 2001).
If you have rosacea there are four stages that you may go through (Pascoe, 2001):
Stage One- Pre-Rosacea The first cardinal sign of rosacea: blood vessels dilate to more stimuli, open wider and stay open for longer periods of time.
Stage Two- Mild Rosacea Begins when the facial redness induced by flushing persists for an abnormal length of time.
Stage Three- Moderate Rosacea As facial flushing becomes more frequent and intense, vascular damage occurs.
Stage Four- Severe Rosacea Characterized by intense bouts of facial flushing, severe inflammation, facial pain, swelling and burning sensation. Also inflammatory papules, pustules and nodules may be present. Some people also experience rhinophyma during this final stage.
Natural now knowing what the signs are if you have darker skin it will be harder to tell that you have it. I did some research before I started to write this story I found only one article that addressed this issue directly.
The article, “rosacea found in African Americans,” talks about rosacea symptoms for African Americans. “The usual symptoms of rosacea also occur in blacks, though some may appear differently. The persistent redness seen in light-skinned sufferers will have a more violet tone in an African American. Though flushing is not as apparent, black suffers describe a feeling of warmth on the face. In fair skinned rosacea patients, the condition may progress to rhinophyma where the nose becomes large and bumpy with excess tissue. (National Rosacea Society, 1997).
Of course there are different treatments available to help with rosacea. A dermatologist can prescribe gels, creams and oral antibiotics. There is also the option of using small electric needles or laser surgery as well.
To conclude, rosacea is an uncommon condition for African Americans but it does happen. Unfortunately there is not a lot of information on the internet about how this condition affects African Americans talk to a dermatologist. What I wanted to get across is that if you hear of someone within our community thinking that they may have rosacea they are not crazy because no matter how many commercials you see black people can have rosacea.
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