Red face ruining life.....

LegacyUser

Hi,

I'm 23 and for the last couple of years I have had what looks kind of like a red rash on both of my cheeks which gets worse when it's hot or I'm run down. Went to a dermatologist about a year back and he diagnosed it as seborrhoeic dermatitis and presribed anti-biotics which didn't seem to work at all. Just wondering if anyone else has suffered from this or knows of any alternative way to cure or at least relieve it a little?

Thanks

Faith

You can get a "colour-calming" cream from No. 7. There's two types actually, they're both in green tubes. I don't know if they'd work for you (I think they're designed for stopping you flushing and going red when you're hot), but you could try them.

Otherwise, go back to your dermatologist.

r3nu4l

You should go back to your dermatologist.

The reason that the antibiotics did not work is that they merely killed off the bacteria on the skin (SD allows increased bacterial colonisation that causes inflammation), the antibiotic did not address the root cause of SD, skin barrier disruption. It is also known that a yeast species called Malasezzia is a complicating factor in many cases of SD and antibiotics will not address this problem, only an antifungal will.

Skin cells get replenished every 28 days or so (more frequently on the face) but in SD and atopic dermatitis, skin barrier disruption results in a breakdown in epidermal differentiation, leading to scaling of the skin. This is partly due to loss of lipids from the skin.

If you are going to go down the creams and ointment route then avoid anything that contains sodium lauryl (or laureth) sulphate, this is a detergent and will further aggravate the skin. Try to avoid anything with lots of emulsifier as well.

I would recommend Bepanthen, it contains dexpanthenol (pro-vitamin B5 and a number of excellent lipids (including pharmaceutical grade lanolin and ceramides) within the ointment base. It will feel greasy on the skin and may produce some shine but it may be useful and should help reduce the inflammation after a week or two. It's not a medicinal product and is available in Boots and Tesco. It does have scientific studies showing that it improves skin barrier status but as with all scientific studies you need to be careful about the claims made Ironically in the UK and Ireland Bepanthen is solely marketed as a product to ease nappy rash but in the rest of Europe it is used by many people for all types of skin rash.

However, Bepanthen may only relieve symptoms so my primary advice is to go back to your dermatologist and make him/her work for you.

Disclaimer: I do not work for Bayer, the makers of this product but I have done consultancy work for them and I've done a lot of work on this product. Mods, if you want to edit/delete my post, go ahead. Original Poster if you want to register an account and PM me for more info about SD then do.

frecklz

I sometimes get all red and blotchy, and I think it's down to mixing cold weather with central heating. My face is fine when it's mild out, but when it's frosty I have to cover my face with my scarf. Think it's just sensitive skin with me.

StormWarrior

Dermalogica do an ultracalming range of skincare products. You might want to order some off ebay. You could use their ultracalming cleanser instead of your usual face wash, the skin soothing booster, multivitamin recovery masque and barrier repair instead of moisturiser. They really reduce redness and skin irritation. What you eat can also make a big difference, you might want to visit a homeopath, they can test you to see if you're sensitive to any kind of food that might be making it worse.

You could also book a dermalogica facial at a beauticians and they can give you a specially prescribed regimen of skincare products.

LegacyUser

Thanks for the replies. i will try some of those suggestions. If anyone has any others that would be great. It's really just a red butterfly shaped rash on each cheek that I have.

LegacyUser

Faith wrote: »

You can get a "colour-calming" cream from No. 7. There's two types actually, they're both in green tubes. I don't know if they'd work for you (I think they're designed for stopping you flushing and going red when you're hot), but you could try them.

Otherwise, go back to your dermatologist.

http://www.boots.com/shop/product_details.jsp?productid=1057248&classificationid=1040524
Will it work for guys?

Victor

The vast majority of thing that work for women will work for men. Obviously there are some things that are gender specific that work on hormones or sub-cuticle skin.*



* My biology teacher in 5th year: Its what makes women's skin soft and men hard.

r3nu4l

cbhyts wrote: »

http://www.boots.com/shop/product_details.jsp?productid=1057248&classificationid=1040524
Will it work for guys?

In the same way that it does for women, yes.

Victor wrote: »

The vast majority of thing that work for women will work for men. Obviously there are some things that are gender specific that work on hormones or sub-cuticle skin.*



* My biology teacher in 5th year: Its what makes women's skin soft and men hard.

The problem with the above product is that it's simply a colour correcter, make-up, nothing more. It will help ease the look of the face (a good thing) but will do nothing for the underlying condition (a bad thing). Also, because SD is essentially a problem where the skin barrier is disrupted, the underlying, immature skin cells are left open to environmental attacks by humidity, temperature, and noxious agents such as make-up. Terrible for the underlying skin, not even that good for mature facial skin.

The epidermis is divided into four distinct layers, theuppermost being the Stratum corneum. This layer of cells are specialised, 'toughened' cells that are designed to resist external influences and block entry of damaging compunds, irritants and allergens as well as microbes. When this layer is disturbed, all of these 'baddies' can enter the lower layers of the skin and cause havoc with the normal course of events, leading to inflammation, caused by an immune response to the 'baddies' and the inflammation and other processes in turn, causes certain cells in the lower skin layers to be forced to the surface to replace the damaged stratum corneum cells. These cells that have been forced to the surface are not yet 'toughened' and incapable of performing the job they need to do.

The result is increased transit of water from inside the skin to the skin surface (trans-epidermal water-loss) and reduced hydration of the skin (skin dryness). So the skin begins to become blotchy and takes on a scaly or flaky appearance. The skin is red due to the inflammation mentioned earlier.

A moisturiser will help keep the skin hydrated but not all moisturisers are the same and many contain fragrances and preservatives, terrible for damaged skin.

The products that Stormwarrior and myself mentioned stand some chance of being able to address the underlying condition and are over-the-counter products. A dermatologist may also recommend a steroid cream, useful in the short-term. However, he should also tell you not to use this for very long as steroid creams, especially those applied to the face (The thinnest skin layer on the body), can cause the skin to become irreversibly thinner if their use is prolonged.

/Aside
frecklz is right, going from warm, dry environments (centrally heated buildings) into cold, humid/damp environments induces skin sensitivity in many people and can cause blotchy skin, sharp itching and even localised, raised lumping of skin on exposed areas in those with certain skin types.

Bethany

I'm reading your post and I'm wondering if by any chance you would have this.
http://www.rosacea.org/patients/allaboutrosacea.php

A lot of skin conditions mimic one another. You must see your doctor again. Most skin conditions are very treatable if not curable.Good luck

Gumbyman

Hi there,

If you are a woman then ignore this post but if you are a man then you might think about growing a bear if all else fails? An alternative remedy of sorts......

Try to remember that other people don't notice this as much as you do. And it could be a lot worse! Having said that, I know it must be a major source of concern to you (I'd be the same) and I wish you the very best of luck with it.

Cheers,
Gumby.

Gumbyman

Sorry - meant to say beard! I'm sure you figured it out but just in case........

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

who_ru

r3nu4l wrote: »

If you are going to go down the creams and ointment route then avoid anything that contains sodium lauryl (or laureth) sulphate, this is a detergent and will further aggravate the skin. Try to avoid anything with lots of emulsifier as well. [/B]

I'm confused. i was prescribed Nizoral shampoo by my doctor for a not dissimilar condition, it contains sodium lauryl ether sulphate, is this a good or bad thing?

r3nu4l

who_ru wrote: »

I'm confused. i was prescribed Nizoral shampoo by my doctor for a not dissimilar condition, it contains sodium lauryl ether sulphate, is this a good or bad thing?

I suspect in your case it's a bit of both Nizoral contains ketoconazole, an antifungal agent that kills off yeast. Yeast are partially responsible for many cases of dry skin on the scalp. The azole antifungal ketoconazole is very good but it's not very easy for manufacturers to dissolve it into liquids, the presence of cerrtain emulsifiers and sodium lauryl sulphate helps get the drug into the shampoo

While sodium lauryl sulphate is not 'nice' to the skin it may be necessary in some cases so that the active ingredient (ketocaonazole, in Nizoral) that will tackle the problem can actually get into the product and also attack the source of infection.

For example, a product called urea is not very good for the skin or nails in high concentrations, yet in many cases of fungal nail infections, it is applied to the nail so that the nail can be partially digested, allowing the antifungal which would otherwise be unable to penetrate the nail, to get in there and do the job.

Almost all cleansing products, shower gels etc contain sodium lauryl sulphate, that's what gives you those lovely suds It's not particularly bad for healthy skin (not good for it either) but in damaged skin it can act as an irritant and cause further itching, inflammation or damage.

EDIT: I feel I'm taking up far too much space on this thread. I'm happy to answer any further questions from anyone by Private Message.

sportswear

Op the only thing that you can take out of this thread is to go back to your dermatologist. or a different one. THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT CAN BE FIXED !!!


and he is the ONLY expert that you should listen to.

estar

sounds like rosacea

laser therapy is really really good for this

estar

is for use under makeup and not on its own

and wll look ridiculous without foundation

he would be better off using a light colour corrector
with a brown tint - it would look more natural
than the green cream

invest in a good dermatologist and prepare to spend money!!!!

its worth it