Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory skin condition. It mostly appears on the face, but it can also show up on the neck, head, ears, and chest. There’s no cure, but there are a number of treatments designed to reduce the symptoms and make it less noticeable.
At Med Physique Center for Aesthetics, our expert aestheticians are platelet-rich plasma (PRP) specialists, using the therapy for the treatment of a number of skin conditions, including rosacea. Here’s what you need to know about PRP and how it can treat your rosacea.
Rosacea is a common inflammatory condition that can often be mistaken for acne, eczema, or an allergic skin reaction. It affects between 1-20% of the population, particularly women over 30 who have fair skin and blue eyes, though darker-skinned people can develop it as well. Symptoms come and go, and they may change over time.
Rosacea’s three primary types are categorized by their symptoms:
All three types produce itching, stinging, or burning sensations. In addition to facial skin, they may affect the eyes, causing inflammation of both the eyelids and the eyes themselves, and leading to dryness, redness, irritation, and vision disturbances.
Doctors believe both genetic and environmental factors play a role in the development of rosacea, though many of the specific factors haven’t yet been determined.
Studies suggest rosacea is associated with blood vessel abnormalities and problems with the immune system. People with rosacea have blood vessels that dilate too easily, causing the characteristic facial redness and skin flushing. And while inflammation is a normal immune system response to pathogens, injury, and toxins, inflammation associated with rosacea is abnormal — it impairs the skin's ability to shield the body from invasion.
Platelets are one component of your blood, the part for clotting and recruiting healing factors to an injury site. Medical doctors and aestheticians both take advantage of those properties to boost the effectiveness of treatments for musculoskeletal injuries, surgical wounds, and cosmetic concerns.
At Med Physique Center for Aesthetics, we offer PRP to help treat rosacea as part of the PRP facial, sometimes called a “vampire facial.” We start by drawing a small amount of blood from your arm. Next, we spin the vial down in a centrifuge, isolating the platelets in the blood’s watery plasma; it’s now called platelet-rich plasma. We then set it aside until it’s needed.
The PRP facial has two major steps. The first is microneedling. We use the SkinPen® device to create dozens of “micro-injuries” in the dermal layer of your skin, which triggers your body’s healing response. The second is applying the prepared PRP solution over those microscopic holes, allowing it to soak deep into the tissue. The platelets not only provide their own healing factors, but they also recruit additional healing properties to the injured sites, stimulating tissue repair.
PRP triggers fibroblasts, too, which produce the structural protein called collagen. More collagen in the area allows for faster healing, greater tissue support, and increased blood vessel repair. Your red, blemished skin becomes smooth and healthy.
If you’re unhappy with the symptoms of rosacea, a PRP facial might be just the thing to reduce or even eliminate the visible signs. To learn more or set up a consultation with one of our aestheticians, give Med Physique Center for Aesthetics a call at 512-361-2650, or book online with us today.
