You may want to look at some of the photos of rosacea mimics. Here is a partial list of the the rosacea mimics.
If you have been following like I have throughout all the rosacea support groups the confusion and frustration of diagnosing rosacea or what skin condition a sufferer has developed, you will notice that the list of subtypes, variants and other skin conditions keeps growing and growing. Time and again rosaceans report that they may have simultaneously another skin condition or that what was originally diagnosed as rosacea actually turns out later diagnosed as something else. To illustrate how difficult is may be to diagnose rosacea note this example. I have been keeping a list of the skin conditions that keep coming up that mimic rosacea and/or require a differential diagnosis from a physician and the list currently is forty skin conditions or diseases. If you know of another one I may have missed I would appreciate knowing about it and the source.
The NRS has tried to help resolve some of this confusion by classifying rosacea into four subtypes and one variant. There are also sources that list many more rosacea variants.
Click Here for the subtypes of rosacea and variants of rosacea.
The subtypes are established and accepted by the NRS 'expert committee' and have been well received by the medical community. However, there are some controversial and other proposals for subtypes and phenotypes mentioned below:
Another proposed fifth subtype:
Neuropathic Rosacea [source] [another source]
One report sites even another phenotype distinct from the four subtypes:
Glandular Rosacea
Variants of Rosacea
The NRS only recognizes one variant, Granulomatous Rosacea. However, most medical literature discuss several other rosacea variants listed below and there is no universal agreement of what constitutes a rosacea variant.
Granulomatous rosacea
Image Dermatology
Online Journal
More on Variants of Rosacea.
I have proposed another variant:
Demodectic Rosacea
You can click here for a a partial list of photos.
Rosacea Keratitis is another proposed variant of rosacea which was announced at the following source:
"Rosacea keratitis is a complication of acne rosacea, a disease in which the skin of the face is affected first by pronounced flushing and later by the formation of nodules and pustules. The keratitis may cause severe pain and corneal scarring with impairment of vision." Source
A variant of rhinoplyma has been proposed:
Rhinophymous leishmaniasis
If that isn't enough, I have complied a list of skin conditions or diseases that mimic rosacea, requiring a differential diagnosis by a qualified physician - click here for a list.
Another report says, "In 2004 in an article appearing in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Crawford et al. proposed the concept of glandular rosacea to describe another phenotype distinct from the four subtypes introduced by the expert committee. Glandular rosacea occurs predominantly in males who characteristically have oily skin, large pores, a tendency to rhinophyma, and inflammatory lesions, including papules, pustules and nodulocystic lesions, that extend onto the lateral cheeks and neck." source This same report says, "Debate also continues over whether rosacea conglobata and rosacea fulminans are variants of acne vulgaris or rosacea."
As you can see the mystery and confusion of rosacea only adds to the frustration and we need more research. I have formed a tax exempt non profit for rosacea that has been approved as a 501 (c) (3) organization that allows rosaceans a say into what research should be undertaken that may clear up some of this confusion. For more information
go to http://www.irosacea.org
Reports of Misdiagnosed Rosacea |
