Oxytetracycline Causing Rosacea?

[rakugaking]

Hi there,

I am a 29 year old male and I think my rosacea may have been caused as a result of using antibiotics to treat acne. I started a six month course of oxytetracycline in September of last year to combat acne on my face. Initially it seemed to be working and my skin cleared considerably in the first 1-2 months. However, I began to notice more and more little red spots developing on my nose. These spots continued to multiply and by late December I had spots all over my nose and in the surrounding area. The creases of my nostrils were affected particularly badly. I finished taking the antibiotics about a month ago and my nose seems to have calmed down somewhat, although it is still prone to redness and these little spots. I never had a problem like this prior to using the oxytetracycline and I was wondering if anyone else had experienced anything like this.

Oh, and the acne's back now too so I have two fun skin conditions to battle!

[J-Mill]

Hi there,

I am a 29 year old male and I think my rosacea may have been caused as a result of using antibiotics to treat acne. I started a six month course of oxytetracycline in September of last year to combat acne on my face. Initially it seemed to be working and my skin cleared considerably in the first 1-2 months. However, I began to notice more and more little red spots developing on my nose. These spots continued to multiply and by late December I had spots all over my nose and in the surrounding area. The creases of my nostrils were affected particularly badly. I finished taking the antibiotics about a month ago and my nose seems to have calmed down somewhat, although it is still prone to redness and these little spots. I never had a problem like this prior to using the oxytetracycline and I was wondering if anyone else had experienced anything like this.

Oh, and the acne's back now too so I have two fun skin conditions to battle!

Tetracycline is used commonly to treat rosacea. The description of your skin along with the possible precipitating factor of longer term high dose antibiotic use would lead me to believe that this is seb derm, not Rosacea. As seb derm is thought to involve a common skin fungus/yeast, and antibiotic use in high doses has been associated with the increase of fungal populations it is possible that this could have caused a seb derm flare.

[TheMediumDog]

I agree completely with J-Mill.

I would go so far as to think it impossible that you have developed rosacea as a result of taking Oxytetracycline. A seb derm diagnosis makes much more sense. That you mention the creases of the nostrils just adds to this.

[johny]

I hate antibiotics. I had very small acne bumps with redness as a teenager and took a lot of antibiotics which in turn didn't work that well. I tried loads of antibiotics.

Consequently, I started getting recurring fungal infections. If you don't believe antibiotics are definitely working for you don't use them. They can cause a lot of problems. I had small acne spots with whiteheads, tons of them. I now realize my body responds well to a very low carb/sugar free diet and little dairy. I've overcome 90% my persistent body acne with this diet, and recurring white heads on my face.

I'm basically on an Anti-Candida diet (which is anti-inflammatory) and i'm having really positive results with it (acne wise). I has seem small effects on my rosacea and seb derm but i've only been on the diet for just over three weeks. Not to mention I lost that last little bit of stubborn weight around my waist and now have a six pack that I worked so hard for before and could never achieve.

[rakugaking]

Thanks for the replies, guys!

Tetracycline is used commonly to treat rosacea. The description of your skin along with the possible precipitating factor of longer term high dose antibiotic use would lead me to believe that this is seb derm, not Rosacea. As seb derm is thought to involve a common skin fungus/yeast, and antibiotic use in high doses has been associated with the increase of fungal populations it is possible that this could have caused a seb derm flare.

Your argument certainly makes a lot of sense. I used doxycycline as an anti-malarial a couple of times in the past for 2-3 months at a time so this could have had an effect as well I guess. I'm going back to my GP to get a referral to a dermatologist. Hopefully I'll get some more effective treatment ideas.

johny: I've recently changed my diet in an attempt to eliminate foodstuffs that could possibly worsen my acne. I've all but eliminated dairy and have noticed on the few occasions that I've had it recently that I've gotten itchy straight away (mainly on my scalp and face) and broken out within 12-24 hours. It's still too soon to say if there's a definite link but I'm starting to think I might have a dairy allergy.