The lower incidence of rosacea in the elderly may be a result of an aging-related impaired immune response, according to a new study published in the journal Immunity, Inflammation and Disease.¹

As a first step in a unique undertaking to boost rosacea research results by standardizing its study, a group of investigators including 63 experts from 17 countries as well as 25 rosacea patients have identified eight key aspects of the treatment or experience of rosacea, called core domains. Their use is expected to make it easier than ever for researchers, clinicians and pharmaceutical companies to amass meaningful information on how to better diagnose and treat this widespread disorder, according to a recent report in the journal JAMA Dermatology.¹

Medical scientists at Dokuz Eyful University in Turkey recently published the first study to demonstrate that providing more information to rosacea patients not only improves their understanding of the disorder but also enhances their quality of life and adherence to sun protection.¹

A recent study published in Frontiers in Immunology examined whether bacteria residing on the skin and in the gut may play a role in the development of a broad range of skin diseases, including acne vulgaris, alopecia areata, androgenic alopecia, hidradenitis suppurativa, pilonidal cyst, rosacea, rhinophyma, and seborrheic dermatitis.¹ The investigators used an analysis technique known as bi-directional Mendelian randomization to identify 294 varieties of bacteria on the skin and 211 in the gut.

A new study from South Korea links the use of acid suppressants – proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and histamine-2 receptor antagonists (H2RAs), widely used therapies for treatment of acid-related gastrointestinal diseases such as peptic ulcer disease, heartburn, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and others – and increased risk of rosacea, according to a recent report in the Journal of Korean Medical Science.1

Editor's Note: It’s important to note that findings of comorbidity studies like this one only suggest a potential association. To determine any cause and effect relationship, further study is required.

Several eye diseases, including the potentially blinding glaucoma, are now among the many serious systemic disorders that have been found to occur more often in individuals with rosacea, according to recent separate studies in Taiwan and South Korea.

Are they a cause or simply a coincidence? Demodex mites have long been a conundrum for rosacea patients. Unlike other environmental triggers, they are unavoidable, as they are normal inhabitants of facial skin, but they do exist in greater numbers on the skin of individuals with rosacea.^1,2

We try to explain scientific studies in plain, easy-to-understand language, but some terms may still need additional explanation.

While rosacea may make some patients want to tear their proverbial hair out, a recent small study discovered a potential association between the disorder and a form of progressive hair loss in women. 

Researchers have attempted to determine the global prevalence of this widespread disorder for the first time.