Interview transcription:
We interviewed Penelope Pratsou to learn what the best treatment for rosacea is.
What’s the best treatment for rosacea? I assume there’s many but I’m sure people will want to know what the best one is.
Penelope Pratsou: There are many treatments for rosacea. I wouldn’t say that there’s one best treatment, but it all does depend on how your rosacea’s affecting you. If you came to see me, I’d want to know what the biggest problem is.
Is it redness? Is it flushing? Is it fixed redness? In which case we’d go into a different direction. Have you got more pimples and spots that you want to address, or is it both?
We would tackle each problem individually, and there are different treatments for these. For the pimples and the spots, we’ve got a number of topical preparations that I might start with. There are now new topical preparations that can work as well as antibiotics, which we use a lot of as well, but everything has its place.
Penelope Pratsou: Actually, a lot of people will worry about using antibiotics in the long term, but they are quite useful, and they work quite well to tackle the inflammation in rosacea.
Additionally, there are things that I can do to help with the redness and the flushing. There’s a fairly newish treatment that can help with this redness. It comes as a gel, which can be extremely useful.
Especially if you’ve got a big meeting coming up or a presentation and you don’t want to become red during that talk or presentation. Then there are some patients who do get quite severe rosacea with quite bad pimples and spots. There is a treatment called Roaccutane or isotretinoin, which we use a lot of in acne, but it can also be used in rosacea in certain cases, so plenty of things that we can do for rosacea.
If you notice that you have any of the symptoms or conditions that we’ve just discussed, we invite you to book a consultation with Dr Penelope Pratsou. She’ll be able to assess your situation and give you a personalised treatment plan.
About the author
Dr Penelope Pratsou | Consultant Dermatologist
MBChB, MRCP (UK) (Dermatology)
I’m Dr Penelope Pratsou, a skilled independent Consultant Dermatologist based in Berkshire. I have specialist expertise in the diagnosis and management of all skin cancers, and in performing mole checks. I’m a trained skin surgeon and remove skin cancers, moles, skin tags, cysts and warts.
I also have invaluable experience in dealing with all skin conditions, from the common skin complaints of acne, rosacea, eczema and psoriasis, to the rarer and more complex skin problems, having seen it all through years of NHS work.
After I obtained my Membership to the Royal College of Physicians, I undertook rigorous specialist training in dermatology, before being appointed as a Consultant Dermatologist at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading. There, I helped set up and lead a busy clinic for the diagnosis and treatment of suspected skin cancer. I was also actively involved in supervising and training both dermatology and GP trainees.
Alongside my increasingly busy private practice, I have maintained an NHS practice in Oxford in order to continue to engage with challenging cases and to develop my specialist interest in skin allergy.
