rosacea flushing and propranolol

propranolol (also known as inderal) is a non-selective beta-blocker.

Some extracts from the article ;

On the other hand, flushing associated with rosacea commonly fails to respond to standard therapies for rosacea. Idiopathic flushing rends to occur in women and the symptoms persist for a long duration. Treatment of flushing is difficult primarily because it has been assoicated with multiple etiologies. Improvement in transient flushing is also difficult ot quantitate, although attempts to provoke flushing and to measure the responses to medications have been performed. Even so, only small series and case reports are found in the literature.
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Beta-blocker therapy should be monitored for side effects. Fatigue, somnolence, and dizziness and reported by approximately 10% of patients.
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Symptomatic idiopathic flushing and flushing associated with rosacea deserve separate treatment, since the flushing does not respond to conventionial rosacea treatment. Although the perceived improvement of flushing and its sumptoms in 8 of our 9 patients treated with propranolol is encouraging, prospective randomized studies with control subjects and standardized quality of life date are necessary to better determine the efficacy of propranolol therapy.

Symptomatic treatment of idiopathic and rosacea-associated cutaneous flushing with propranolol

Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Volume 53, Issue 5 , November 2005, Pages 881-884.

Helen Craige MD and Jack B. Cohen DO,

Department of Dermatology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School
Dallas, Texas. Available online 20 October 2005.

Flushing has been associated with medications, rosacea, menopause, carcinoid syndrome, pheochromocytoma, polycythemia, and mastocytosis, although it can occur without known cause. There are no known specific treatments available, but ???-blockers have suppressed flushing reactions in some patients, particularly when associated with anxiety. The medical histories and clinical characteristics of 9 patients with either idiopathic flushing or flushing associated with rosacea were reviewed. Eight patients experienced subjective improvement with propranolol therapy.

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