Chronic Facial Redness and Heat: the Symptoms and Solutions - Internal Medicine

Severe facial redness and heat for several months?

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Hello Dr.
Park,
I apologize for the lengthy message, but I sincerely hope you can read through it.
My mother is 49 years old.
She began experiencing unexplained facial flushing and heat in May of last year (2011).
Initially, the redness was not too severe, and applying cold compresses or aloe vera gel would help soothe the symptoms.
However, the condition worsened significantly by November of the same year.
Despite no external triggers (my mother now sits in front of a fan at home and only uses a dim light), she experiences multiple episodes of flushing and heat throughout the day.
Each episode causes her cheeks to become instantly hot, swollen, red, and engorged with blood, to the point where it feels like her skin is about to burst.
The capillaries are severely dilated, and the burning sensation feels like fire.
In recent months, she has been receiving treatment from dermatologists and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, but her condition continues to deteriorate.
She experiences persistent redness, swelling, heat, and abnormal blood circulation with microvascular dilation.
The episodes can occur at any time, and during each episode, her face becomes instantly hot, swollen, and red, with the burning sensation intensifying.
This is especially severe at night when she covers herself with a blanket; she feels suffocated, sensitive to light, heat, and sunlight.
In enclosed spaces, her facial redness and heat worsen.
Despite the cool weather, she needs to use a fan to cool down and apply cold compresses to her face.
Throughout the day, she experiences sudden flushing from various points on her face, which quickly spreads to her entire face, causing it to become red, swollen, and hot, as if on fire.
The frequency of these episodes has increased, and the redness is difficult to subside.
Recently, we have noticed various sizes of red patches and microvascular dilation on her cheeks.
Both her facial and body temperatures are elevated, and her face can become hot and red at any moment.
Initially, only her cheeks were hot and swollen, but recently, the condition has rapidly spread to her nose, upper and lower lips, chin, and ears.
She experiences multiple episodes daily, with severe swelling and congestion in her nose, and the blood vessels on her face become visibly dilated, with enlarged pores that are hot, red, and burning, causing her significant distress.
Throughout the day, her facial color changes continuously, often showing signs of blood pooling in her face, making her cheeks, nose, upper and lower lips, and chin appear dark, red, hot, and swollen.
Sometimes her face appears pink, bright red, dark red, or even dark purple, resulting in very uneven skin tone.
My mother has been suffering from ulcerative colitis for eight years and has been on medication, which previously left her face pale and devoid of color.
However, in recent months, her face has become red, swollen, hot, and burning.
Despite consulting several Western and traditional Chinese medicine doctors, there has been no improvement.
She now has various sizes of red patches and microvascular dilation on her face, which is mostly red, causing us great sadness.
The worst part is that she has not been able to sleep well for several months.
She has lost several kilograms, yet her face remains red, swollen, and hot, with constant pain and swelling.
The worsening symptoms due to facial congestion and swelling have made it impossible for her to live normally.
She needs to sit in front of a fan 24/7 and apply cold compresses to her face.

At night, she cannot rest properly; she wakes up feeling hot as soon as she falls asleep, and her face continuously feels like it is burning, to the extent that it could cause skin burns.
I would like to ask if you have encountered similar cases or have any treatment options? What could be causing my mother’s persistent facial heat? What kind of examinations and treatments should we pursue for her? I apologize for the many questions, and I truly appreciate your patience in reading this.
I eagerly await your response.
Thank you very much!

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Tony Wong, 20~29 year old female. Ask Date: 2012/02/21