Q. I am using a topical antibiotic to control my rosacea with great success. Should I suspend treatment for a couple of weeks to prevent developing a resistance to the medication?

A. Unlike systemic therapy taken as oral tablets or capsules, topical medication is not likely to cause a resistance to antibiotics. In a recent study, rosacea patients who applied a topical antibiotic twice daily over two years did not become less sensitive to the medication and continued to respond even with long-term use. The patients were generally able to avoid long-term use of oral antibiotics during this time.

Topical treatments usually have minimal side effects and the amount of medication absorbed into the bloodstream is either absent or minuscule.

Q. Is it common or rare for a woman in her 70s to break out with rosacea?

A. While rosacea most commonly first appears between the ages of 30 and 60, a National Rosacea Society survey of 2,279 rosacea patients found that approximately 10 percent of the respondents saw their initial symptoms after the age of 69. The most common age for the first appearance of rosacea was between 40 and 49 years old, reported by 25 percent of the survey respondents, followed by ages 30 to 39 for 19 percent of the respondents, 50 to 59 for 18 percent, and 60 to 69 for 15 percent. Rosacea symptoms appeared before age 30 in 13 percent of the respondents.