“What's the difference between rosacea and acne?”
I thought I had acne before I went to the dermatologist. Instead, it turned out I have a mild case of rosacea. But it looks the same to me, what's the difference between these conditions? My dermatologist didn't use tests to diagnose this, by the way. She only did a physical examination.
2 Answers
Most dermatologists don't have difficulty identifying the difference between acne and rosacea. A more severe form of rosacea has an acne component, thus the name acne rosacea. Most patients have mostly a flushing component only with no acne-like eruptions.
A biopsy or tests is not usually helpful to tell between acne vulgaris (regular acne) and acne rosacea. The differences are clinical. If you saw a board certified dermatologist I would trust his/her opinion.
Acne vulgaris usually starts in teenage years and often persists in women throughout life due to hormonal flares. It usually has whiteheads, blackheads, and inflammatory pustules (pus bumps) or papules (red bumps). There are other less common subtypes such as nodulocystic (deep under the skin).
On the other hand acne rosacea (sometimes called adult acne) has multiple different subtypes and is quite common in caucasian patients. It can have enlarged blood vessels on the mid face/nose, flushing, red bumps/pus bumps, eye involvement, or an itchy subtype called perioral dermatitis often caused by use of topical steroids. Rosacea has different triggers for everyone including sun, heat, stress, and spicy foods. The treatments can be similar (oral anti-inflammatory antibiotics such as doxycycline) or with topical washes.
Acne vulgaris usually starts in teenage years and often persists in women throughout life due to hormonal flares. It usually has whiteheads, blackheads, and inflammatory pustules (pus bumps) or papules (red bumps). There are other less common subtypes such as nodulocystic (deep under the skin).
On the other hand acne rosacea (sometimes called adult acne) has multiple different subtypes and is quite common in caucasian patients. It can have enlarged blood vessels on the mid face/nose, flushing, red bumps/pus bumps, eye involvement, or an itchy subtype called perioral dermatitis often caused by use of topical steroids. Rosacea has different triggers for everyone including sun, heat, stress, and spicy foods. The treatments can be similar (oral anti-inflammatory antibiotics such as doxycycline) or with topical washes.
