Skin signs of rosacea outside the central face may be more common than is widely recognized, according to a new study presented by Dr. Joel Bamford, associate professor of family practice, University of Minnesota - Duluth, during the annual meeting of the Society for Investigative Dermatology.

"Almost everyone thinks of rosacea as being a facial condition," Dr. Bamford said. Yet, in a study of 94 patients with rosacea, he found that 42 to 84 percent showed skin signs beyond the face.

In the study, 99 percent of the patients had rosacea on the cheeks, 97 percent on the nose, 92 percent on the chin, 87 percent on the forehead and 86 percent paranasally (alongside the nose). However, 84 percent also had similiar skin signs on the trunk, 66 percent on the neck, 57 percent on the ears and 42 percent on the scalp.

Of those patients with extra-facial skin signs, erythema (redness) was found on at least one site on the body in 100 percent of the cases, scaling in 100 percent, papules (bumps) in 96 percent, telangiectasia (visible blood vessels) in 90 percent of cases, pustules (pimples) in 71 percent and edema (swelling) in 30 percent. Dr. Bamford suggested that further studies should be conducted to determine the prevalence of extra-facial signs of rosacea in general populations, to determine if their extra-facial signs are really associated with rosacea.