Efficacy and safety of non-insulated fractional microneedle radiofrequency for treating difficult-to-treat rosacea: a 48-week, prospective, observational study

Rosacea is a common chronic facial inflammatory skin disease. However, treatment for “difficult-to-treat rosacea” cases has not been established. This 48-week, prospective, observational study analyzed patients who underwent three non-insulated fractional microneedle radiofrequency (NFMRF) sessions at 2-month intervals. Therapy efficacy, epidermal barrier function, and side effects were evaluated. 34 subjects completed the trial. NFMRF resulted in CEA score reduction from 2.65 ± 0.59 to 1.56 ± 0.50 (P < 0.001) and mean DLQI reduction from 16.70 ± 3.55 to 10.48 ± 2.92 (P < 0.001). The successes of CEA (44.12 vs. 2.94%), IGA (91.67 vs. 25.00%), and flushing (58.82 vs. 26.47%) were observed. Among 34 patients, 22 reported “excellent” or “good” improvement and 30 were “very” or “relatively” satisfied. Skin barrier results revealed that hemoglobin content significantly decreased from 376.47 ± 71.29 at visit 0 to 161.32 ± 52.86 at visit 3. 2 of 30 patients followed-up at 6 months had a relapse at 18 and 20 weeks, respectively. No serious side effects were observed. NFMRF alone results in visible improvement and has great efficacy for difficult-to-treat rosacea without compromising patient safety or damaging the skin barrier.