What is the medical term for skin redness?

Is erythema the same as flushing or rosacea?

What causes redness on the face?

Temporary facial redness often follows heat, exercise, strong emotions, alcohol or spicy food, which is quite a guest list for one colour. Flushing can feel warm and usually settles without treatment, taking a few minutes to a couple of hours depending on the cause. On darker skin, flushing can look like slight darkening rather than obvious redness.3

Rosacea commonly affects the forehead, nose, cheeks and chin. Redness can come and go or become persistent, with visible blood vessels, swelling or bumps containing pus. Burning, stinging and eye irritation can also occur. Its causes are complex and not fully understood; blood vessels that expand too easily and abnormal inflammation are involved.4

Facial redness alone does not identify rosacea. Acne and several types of dermatitis can look similar, and rosacea redness is harder to see on brown or black skin. Some medicines also cause flushing. Check whether flushing appears in your medicine's listed side effects, and speak to a doctor if you suspect a medicine or medical condition is responsible.56

What causes skin redness?

Redness elsewhere on the body can accompany a rash caused by irritants, allergens, infections or conditions such as eczema, hives and psoriasis. Contact dermatitis can follow exposure to fragrances, preservatives, nickel, soaps or detergents. Hives produce raised, itchy welts; psoriasis produces a thick, scaly rash. A rash can affect one area or spread across the body.2

A rash can be red, dry, itchy, painful, swollen or blistering. A clinician examines the rash, reviews your symptoms and medical history, and sometimes uses allergy tests or other tests to identify the cause.2

What should you do about redness?

For occasional flushing, try cooling down with a cool compress and avoiding the foods or drinks that trigger it. For rosacea, use gentle skincare and sunscreen of at least SPF 30 every day. Rosacea is not acne and does not improve with ordinary acne treatments. It cannot be cured, but treatment can control symptoms. Rash treatment depends on the cause and can take several weeks.2357

When should you get medical help?

Book an appointment for symptoms of rosacea or frequent unexplained flushing, especially with vomiting or diarrhoea. If you have rosacea with eye pain, blurred vision, light sensitivity, redness or a gritty feeling, seek urgent care: these can signal inflammation of the cornea, the clear front of the eye.35

Seek immediate medical help for a rash that appears suddenly, spreads rapidly, covers the body, comes with fever, blisters or forms open sores, or looks infected with warmth, swelling or yellow pus. A rash with severe difficulty breathing needs emergency care.2