Effect of COVID-19 and Face Masks on the Condition of Rosacea - A Retrospective Analysis of 87 Patients

Ting Zhang; Xu Liu; Fengjuan Yang; Yuanyuan Xu; Xian Jiang

doi:10.2147/CCID.S429099

Effect of COVID-19 and Face Masks on the Condition of Rosacea - A Retrospective Analysis of 87 Patients

Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol. 2023 Oct 13:16:2855-2862. doi: 10.2147/CCID.S429099. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ting Zhang^#¹, Xu Liu^#¹, Fengjuan Yang¹, Yuanyuan Xu¹, Xian Jiang^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Dermatology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China.
² Laboratory of Dermatology, Clinical Institute of Inflammation and Immunology, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Introduction: The pathogenesis of COVID-19 includes systemic immune activation and endothelial dysfunction, which is closely related to the pathogenesis of rosacea. In order to investigate the influence of COVID-19 infection on the condition of rosacea patients, we retrospectively investigated the impact of COVID-19 infection and COVID-19-related masks on rosacea patients.

Methods: We collected the basic information from rosacea patients who had a long-term follow-up at West China Hospital of Sichuan University. Between January 2023 and March 2023, we recruited 87 rosacea patients for this survey.

Results: Our results showed that COVID-19 infection could aggravate the condition of rosacea patients, and the change in the symptoms was not related to fever, temperature, antipyretics use, and vaccination. In addition, we observed a significant association between the type of mask worn by rosacea patients and exacerbation, while the duration of mask usage did not exhibit a similar relationship.

Discussion: Considering the ongoing global utilization of masks due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the possible recurrence of COVID-19 infection, dermatologists should monitor the condition of rosacea patients infected with COVID-19 and adjust the treatment regimens accordingly.

Keywords: COVID-19 infection; SARS-CoV-2; mask; rosacea.

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the 1.3.5 Project for Disciplines of Excellence, West China Hospital, Sichuan University (ZYJC21036) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82073473) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82273559).