Rosacea Fulminans

Abstract

Rosacea fulminans is a rare dermatosis characterized by the sudden onset of coalescing nodules and draining sinuses on the face, typically affecting young women. First reported in 1940 by the name pyoderma faciale, it was thought to be an infiltrative pyoderma, possibly caused by tuberculosis, despite being unable to identify a cause [1]. It was not until 1992 that it was suggested that the condition was a form of rosacea, as all patients also experienced fl ushing and blushing along with the rapid and volatile onset. The term rosacea fulminans was then proposed [2]. Despite research, a bacterial infection has not been shown to play a pathogenic role, further evidence that the condition is not a pyoderma, but rather a severe variant of rosacea [3]. Rosacea fulminans has also been referred to as granulomatous rosacea.