Efficacy and safety of combining microneedling with oral doxycycline for the treatment of rosacea: a retrospective comparative cohort study

PURPOSE/AIM OF THE STUDY: Oral doxycycline (DOX) is a first-line systemic therapy for rosacea; however, persistent vascular features, such as fixed erythema and flushing, and neurosensory symptoms, such as burning, may respond incompletely to DOX alone. This study aimed to evaluate whether adding microneedling to oral DOX improves clinical outcomes in patients with rosacea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: = 80). The primary endpoint was the treatment success rate for facial erythema at week 12. Secondary outcomes included improvement in inflammatory papulopustular lesions, flushing, capillary dilation, swelling, burning sensations, quality of life, 6-month erythema relapse rate, and safety. RESULTS: < 0.001). No severe adverse events were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Adding microneedling to oral DOX was associated with greater improvement in vascular and neurosensory manifestations of rosacea, particularly facial erythema, flushing, and burning sensations. The combination approach also reduced erythema relapse at 6 months and was well tolerated.