From:  "Linda Sy MD"  
Date:  Fri Feb 26, 1999  10:05 am 
Subject:  [rosacea] Re: Retin-A, undereye bags, allergy testing , Dr. Sy

Dawn, First, I wish to stress that Retin A is an excellent med for acne as
well as effective anti-aging topical that works. It smooths the skin,
unclogs pores and evens out the skin tone. However, I don't know what its
short or long-term effect is on rosacea. This is because of 2 reasons: its
photosensitizing effect and its angiogenetic (causes formation of more blood
vessels) effect. I suspect that the vascular component in rosacea plays a
more important role than we previously suspected. Many young rosacea
sufferers in their 20's started out with mild rosacea as episodes of "easy
to blush/flush" when stimulated by various stimuli, rather than with acne,
seborrhea etc. Therefore, it is possible that Retin A may not be so great
for rosacea. In a few weeks, I hope to post my theories.
Re eye bags: in my experience, there is a frequent genetic component. People
with baggy eyelids can usually detect a hint of this even in their childhood
pictures. However, I suspect that in people with allergies or congestion of
the eyelids, eye bags are more common. The cause is thinning of the skin
with loss of elasticity and the sagging prominence of fat. Treatment is
surgery.

Linda Sy M.D.
Linda Sy Skin Care
http://www.lindasy.com

-----Original Message-----
From: oldstuff@_.net 
To: rosacea-support@egroups.com 
Date: Wednesday, February 24, 1999 1:20 PM
Subject: [rosacea] Retin-A, undereye bags, allergy testing , Dr. Sy


For ten yrs. I've found Retin-A to be a great to way to keep the "bumpies"
peeled away and the texture of my skin smooth. It's irritating at first, but
I found if I only use it every three of four days I do okay and stay
bump-free. Although it's never seemed to impact the redness at all I'm
wondering about the long-term effects on rosacea skin??? After reading Dr.
Nase's info it's clear that many things (sun, rough cleansing, etc.) have
more long-term impact than we know. Dr. Sy?

Also, this eye bag stuff. How common are significant undereye bags in
ocular rosacea suffferers? Can they be corrected w/ cosmetic surgery? Is it
fat pockets or fluid that will collect there again? How can I tell? Dr Sy?

I'm still looking for info on a credible method of testing for food
allergies.

Dawn