Lupus and rosacea have similar facial rashes, leading to misdiagnosis. However, lupus has a wider range of symptoms, including organ malfunction and joint stiffness. Patients and doctors should work together to ensure accurate diagnosis and treatment.
Rosacea and lupus are not related in their etiology, but many lupus patients are initially misdiagnosed with rosacea. The main reason for this is that lupus patients often exhibit a noticeable rash that has many of the characteristics of a rash caused by rosacea. Because rosacea mostly affects the face, patients who don’t have many of the other more common lupus symptoms can start rosacea treatments until more symptoms appear.
The similarities between rosacea and lupus tend to stop with the rash or swelling of the face. Rosacea is a skin condition that causes redness, swelling, itching, and redness, most commonly occurring on the face. Other symptoms may include prominent veins, red nose accompanied by a bulbous or round shape, and a tendency to blush more often than most. These symptoms often come in cycles, with certain activities or situations causing them to flare up.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can cause a wide range of symptoms. They may include a butterfly-shaped rash on the face, fatigue, chronic pain, organ malfunction, and stiff joints. It is a form or arthritis and causes many of the same symptoms as more common variations of the condition. Medications can help slow the progression of symptoms, and some patients go into remission and remain symptom-free for many years.
There is a danger that doctors confuse lupus with rosacea in some patients. Because lupus sometimes affects various organ systems in the body, failure to treat the condition properly could cause long-term problems. Patients may also endure pain and severe discomfort longer than necessary as prescribed medications are often able to relieve many lupus symptoms.
Medical professionals and patients can work together to enable the correct diagnosis of rosacea and lupus. Patients need to be aware of additional symptoms to look out for so they can give their doctors an accurate description of the changes they are experiencing. Also, because rosacea symptoms tend to have specific triggers, patients may want to pay close attention to whether or not the facial rash occurs in correlation with certain activity events or if it is a constant presence. Common triggers of rosacea are exposure to sunlight, stress, hot weather, and certain foods such as alcohol and spicy dishes.
Patients with lupus generally must have several common symptoms before a diagnosis is made. That said, some doctors will start treatment before this criterion is met if symptoms don’t improve over time, even without new ones developing. Patients with rosacea should experience some periods of remission or reduction in symptom severity, so if this does not occur or if further symptoms begin, a doctor should be notified.
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