Rosacea is a skin disorder similar in appearance to acne. It causes a generalized flushing of the face in addition to acne-like bumps. Effecting upwards of an astonishing 50 million people around the globe, the cause is unknown. It is thought to be somewhat genetic in origin, as rosacea tends to manifest in clusters of people who are related. It disproporionately effects caucasion women of european descent between the ages of twenty and fifty years old, but it can manifest in both men and women of different races and ages.

There is no single cure for rosacea, but rather, a number of approaches towards treating and controlling its symptoms. It is something most people have to keep up with their whole life to keep the disorder under control.

The use of lasers to treat rosacea became possible in 1980's as researchers learned it can be an effective way to reduce the prominoence of red blood vessels on the face, thus reducing the overall flushing common in peoples faces who have rosacea.

There are two types of laser treatments for rosace: Pulsed Dye Laser (PDL) and Intense Pulsed Light (IPL).

Now let's take a look at both of these treatments.

Pulsed Dye Laser treatments are the older of the two laser techniques. Research has shown that PDL treatments for rosacea will reduce various smyptoms of rosacea. Additionally, PDL treatments can accomplish this just after one or two treatments!

Symptoms of rosacea that patients report decreasing after being treated with PDL include:

• facial flushing
• itching sensations
• swelling
• burning sensations
• skin sensitivity
• dry skin

Note that PDL treatments can cause visible bruising on the face that can last up to two weeks. It is possible to do the PDL treatments without causing bruising, but it's believed to be less effective than if it were to have caused bruising than to not.

Intense Pulsed Light is a newer type of treatment that gets included under the category of rosacea laser treatment techniques. However, it's is not technically a laser treatment, as IPL uses a source of light that is not a laser.


The FDA approved IPL treatments for rosacea in 1995. Since then it has been used to effectively treat a number of patients with rosacea.

Symptoms of rosacea that patients report decreasing after being with IPL include:

• facial flushing
• prominence of blood vessel
• papule breakouts

Note that IPL treatments can temporarily cause an increase in redness and swelling before an overall decrease begins to happen.

People with rosacea who have the following may not be able to seek laser treatments:

• diabetes
• a predisposition towards blood clots (such as a personal/family history of blood clotting incidents)
• a suntan
• keloids

Talk to your doctor for more information on this specific point.

Unfortunately, the answer is nearly always no.

This leaves the patient responsible for covering 100% of the costs, which generally start at $300 per treatment session, not to exceed $500 per treatment. As noted, patients see tangible results with IPL after just a single or second treatment. Note though that it is common to seek up to half dozen treatments with either technique.