Herbal Health

Acne rosacea is often called the curse of the Celtics as it is commonly seen in New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain. It occurs both in men and women, usually around middle age. Acne rosacea often causes red, flushed cheeks and noses, giving the impression that the sufferer has drunk a little too much! The exact cause of this condition is unknown, but there may be several contributing factors:- Alcohol Red wines in particular may precipitate acne rosacea. It is best, however, to completely avoid alcohol.- Hot, spicy foods. Although hot, spicy foods do not cause acne rosacea, they often aggravate it. Bland foods and cool drinks are best.- Moisturizers. Any thick or oily moisturizer can precipitate the condition. It is not uncommon to see it following the use of oily or heavy night-time creams and sunscreens. If a moisturizer is necessary for the face, it is best to use a light cream such as Neutrogena, Nivea Visage or Simple Moisturizer and a non-creamy sunscreen such as Ego SunSense Toddler Milk, Clinique City Block, Nivea Visage with sunscreen, Roche Aquababy or Oil of Ulan Daily UV Protectant Moisturizer SPF 15.- Oral contraceptive pills. Contraceptive pills which contain a high level of progestogen can precipitate acne. If this is the case, a low progestogen pill should be used.- Stress. Stress seems to contribute to many skin conditions and acne rosacea is no exception. How stress produces the eruption, however, is not known. - Strong cortisone creams. Betnovate, Celestone, Diprosone and other strong cortisone creams are not suitable for use on the face and can cause acne roasacea.Acne rosacea is very easily treated with oral antibiotics, especially tetracycline. More recently, a topical antibiotic gel, Rozex, has been used successfully.Acne rosacea can be associated with broken capillaries, especially around the nose and cheeks. These are not related to alcohol intake, neither are they caused by exposure to hot or cold weather. If broken capillaries occur, they can be readily treated with the new copper vapour or pulsed dye lasers, or with fine needle diathermy.Bulbous noses can be caused by acne rosacea, particularly in men. These are best treated with a carbon dioxide laser, which removes the excess bulky tissue in layers.
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There are four common reasons for the treatment of moles:

1. Diagnosis of a mole as being of the type that is statistically more likely to become malignant; such a mole would be the large, hairy ‘bathing trunk’ naevus.

2. The presence of changes suspected to be malignant.

3. The occurrence of functional changes within the mole. These may be irritation, trauma, or infection.

4. Cosmetic reasons. In this case removal is only successful if the result improves the appearance of the individual. The choice of surgical technique is therefore important.

There is absolutely no foundation for the widely-held misconception that surgical interference with a mole will cause it to become malignant. This may have arisen from the result of inadequate treatment of what in fact was already an early malignant melanoma, not a simple mole. All doubtful moles should be excised with an adequate margin and submitted for pathological examination. No moles should ever be simply destroyed by cauterization or similar treatment without adequate pathological examination. Removal for cosmetic or functional reasons does not necessarily have to be complete. Elliptical excision and suturing may be avoided and a very satisfactory cosmetic result obtained by a shave excision. This entails shaving the mole off flush with the skin surface, and stopping bleeding with light electro-desiccation.

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