Przegląd Dermatologiczny (Sep 2016)

Infectious agents in the pathogenesis of rosacea

  • Dorota M. Mehrholz,
  • Roman Nowicki,
  • Wioletta M. Barańska-Rybak

DOI
https://doi.org/10.5114/dr.2016.61783
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 103, no. 4
pp. 323 – 329

Abstract

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Acne rosacea is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects the face. The symptoms depend on the stage of the disease. The first stage is characterized by erythema and telangiectasia. This is followed by a papulopustular phase and a phymatous type in the final stages. An ocular type of rosacea is described in the literature as well. In the etiopathogenesis of papulo-pustular and ocular types of rosacea, inflammatory response modulation caused by microorganisms living on the skin play a key role. Binding of bacterial ligands with epidermal receptors leads to induction of the inflammatory cascade. This leads to vasodilation and white blood cell chemotaxis, which causes a change in the microenvironment of the skin that assists in microorganism proliferation. Microorganisms such as Demodex folliculorum, Bacillus oleronius, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Chlamydia pneumoniae and Helicobacter pylori play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of rosacea.

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