<p>My son has had problems with his skin for a couple of years now and is thinking about visiting the dermatologist to request Accutane treatments. Does anyone have experience with this? I’m wondering what to expect in the way of problems or side effects. How great is the risk involved vs. the outcome?</p>
<p>The best read on Accutane:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/SAFETY/2002/accutane_PI_6-02.pdf[/url]”>http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/SAFETY/2002/accutane_PI_6-02.pdf</a></p>
<p>Note the warnings on the possible risks associated with the drug in the patient’s consent form on p. 29 of the document. It is a terrible drug when it comes to side effects, but it is also a miracle cure for people with severe acne. Talk to your doctor to see if s/he can suggest alternatives to try before resorting to Accutane.</p>
<p>We went through this with S2, and I suggest you talk it over with a dermatologist. Get more than one opinion even. My son started having acne, on the chin only, at 13. For the next two years, he was on a treatment plan recommended by the HMO pediatrician ---- antibiotics and topical cleansers and treatments. It would clear briefly and then come back worse and it spread to other areas of his face. </p>
<p>Finally, at 15 and a half, my son — a born stoic — came to me and said, “Can we please make an appointment with a dermatologist? It’s not getting better and it’s beginning to affect my confidence.” After that, I told the primary doctor we wanted a referral and got one. The dermatologist told us he had the kind of cystic, nodular acne that would not get better without aggressive treatment.</p>
<p>S was on accutane for five months, and then an extra month. It gets worse before it gets better, even on the drug, but once it starts to work, it is a night and day difference. He has been off the drug since August and the acne has not recurred. The side effects he experienced were dryness, and chapped lips. Nothing psychological. I would have been more concerned about him becoming withdrawn and depressed if we had not decided to put him on accutane and if the acne had continued as it was before. </p>
<p>The program is closely monitored, with blood tests and dermatologist check up every month, and we never saw any aberration in the blood tests that would indicate liver or kidney problems. I’m glad that it worked for him with the first round of treatment; I’d be concerned about him having to take a second round because it is a very powerful drug. But putting him on accutane turned out to be the right decision for him.</p>
<p>What Jazzymom says is exactly what my D experienced. She also had the cystic, nodular acne. However, she had to have two rounds of accutane - one while she was in middle school and the second in high school. </p>
<p>Since then the only breakouts she has are right before her cycle starts. She uses an over the counter cream from Dermalogica, which was recommended by her dermatologist.</p>
<p>The cystic acne can eventually cause scarring if left untreated. Treatments for scarring can be painful and expensive and as they are cosmetic are usually not covered by medical insurance.</p>
<p>Since the liver needs to process the Accutane it’s vital to watch any other drug intake - like Ibuprofen for example. Any teen on Accutane should realize that any drug - alcohol, illegal drugs or even Ibuprofen - should be avoided while taking Accutane.</p>
<p>I would also encourage a diet that includes onions, garlic, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, kale, and Brussels sprouts - all of which are cruciferous vegetables that have a beneficial affect on the liver. Kale and collard greens can be delicious when stir fried with raisins and pine nuts. Look for some good recipes for these vegetables.</p>
<p>My D worked with a naturpathic doctor to support her health while on accutane. It was the naturopath who suggested the nutritional support.</p>
<p>Of all those vegetables you listed the only one I could get him to eat would be the broccoli, uncooked.</p>
<p>Are there any limitations on sports while on this drug?</p>
<p>I’d also strongly recommend supplementation with fish oil (with high DHA/EPA content).</p>
<p>[How</a> To Use Fish Oil To Help You Stop Acne](<a href=“http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Use-Fish-Oil-To-Help-You-Stop-Acne&id=12708]How”>http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Use-Fish-Oil-To-Help-You-Stop-Acne&id=12708)</p>
<p>Two reasons: the proven anti-inflammatory effects of Fish Oil, and aids in the production of prostaglandins.</p>
<p>My son had a friend on Accutane and the only side effect he had was the very, very chapped lips. He lived with chapstick in his pocket and used it frequently.</p>
<p>My daughter was on Accutane. She had the very chapped lips and also some hair loss. As others have said, she was closely monitored by the dermatologist. I felt so bad once treatment was completed, because she was so happy and started wearing tank tops, etc., because I hadn’t noticed how much the acne had bothered her. My sister was on Accutane in the early seventies and has experienced no long term problems.</p>
<p>One, ancedotally-based idea – my son completely gave up milk & most dairly products – this had a very beneficial effect on his acne (also doing oral antibiotics, now, also).</p>
<p>When I was a sophomore in high school, I had severe cystic acne. I had to take three cycles of Accutane treatments to eventually get it cleared. It does work. However, like others have mentioned it is a very powerful drug.</p>
<p>It dries your skin severly. My lips were so dry and chapped it was painful…be sure to keep plenty of chapstick handy. Also, avoid hours of intense sunlight while on the medication. </p>
<p>Even after 13 years of being off Accutane, my skin is still quite dry…I have issues with dry scalp and my lips still chap quite frequently.</p>
<p>The change in your skin is quite dramatic. The side effects were definitely worth the results.</p>
<p>Also, in the early stages of the treatment, your acne will get worse before it clears.</p>
<p>If you have tried other options and they haven’t worked, Accutane is a pretty wonderful “treatment of last resort” - it knocks your acne “into remission” - after Accutane, there won’t be an oily hair problem any more, either.</p>
<p>My brother also took Accutane…he had problems with mood swings and depression while on it. But, this may have been attributed to teenage hormones vs. the Accutane. But, I’ve heard these are side effects you should look out for.</p>
<p>Both my daughters did one course of Accutane. For girls, it is now a real pain to get Accutane. We needed to register on a national website, and the girls had to have monthly pregnancy tests and take a “quiz” online that showed they understood the risks of Accutane to fetuses. Total, crazy bureaucracy – if someone is going to have unprotected sex while on Accutane, taking a quiz is not going to stop them.
Outside of the hassle, both girls were lucky, had no side effects more serious than dried out lips, and were off in about six to seven months with no problems since.</p>
<p>My friend’s daughter had very bad acne which has resulted in some scarring. She was put on accutane and it really helped her a lot. Her skin almost seemed to glow with health. She was monitored very closely by the doctors - both family and derm. She also had to go on the pill though she had no boyfriend. I think she is able to get some treatment for the scarring but has to be off the accutane for a year first.</p>
<p>Fortunately, I had very little scarring. Resist temptation to pick and squeeze.
There are microderm abrasion techniques to minimize the appearance of scars, but I’d wait until you’re in early adulthood and the acne problem is well passed before addressing the issue.</p>
<p>Also, nosebleeds are not uncommon due to the nasal passages drying out.</p>
<p>^ Ah yes…forgot about the nosebleeds. They can be quite bad.</p>
<p>Accutane unfortunately got some bad press when it got some political attention. It is hard to say whether the emotional effects of severe acne are less than any effects from the medication itself. Due to the horrific side-effects on unborn children, female patients have to go through a lot more hassle to get it.</p>
<p>Both my sister and my son used it, and it was nothing short of a miracle drug for them. Neither had any side-effects.</p>
<p>I have a ton of experience. I had horrible, horrible acne beginning at age 13. It was the severe type-cysts and nodules. Creams and soaps don’t cure that, but a lot of docs and t.v. celebrities have kept that a secret. I started washing my face religiously, washing my hands all the time, washing my sheets and pillowcases every other day. I trade benzaclyn, pro-active, and even some stupid “natural” remedies like leaf extracts, etc. Nothing worked. In fact, most treatments just served as an irritant and made my face drier and redder. Then we tried these ridiculously expensive “laser treatments” where they’d attempt to just burn my face into oblivion. Needlessly to say, that was a waste of time and money too. Tried antibiotics too, and all they did was turn my stomach over, and cause bad stools.</p>
<p>I kept hoping I’d “outgrow” it, but it only got worse as I grew less tolerant of it, and started popping constantly and scratching. Finally, my freshmen year of college, I decided I HAD to try accutane. It wasn’t easy to get at all. They required me to make monthly appointments, which was frustrating since I go to college in na different city, and don’t have a car. But around New Year’s 2007, I finally got my hands on this stuff. Since I had an extreme case, I ended up with what they call an “initial outbreak”. That usually only happens to 10% of patients, the ones who have it the most severe. For the first month it got worse, but then it started slowly getting better. About 2.5 months in after we upped the dosage, I started seeing rapid improvements. By the end of my 7 month course, every single zit that was big enough to pop was completely gone! All that was left was redness, especially on my neck. Now more than a full year later, the redness has faded as well, leaving me with nothing but some scarring that I never would have had if I hadn’t waited 6 years to start on accutane.</p>
<p>As for the actual side effects, they were pretty mild. I had a lot of nosebleeds at first, and had very chapped lips. It didn’t effect my train of thought; I actually got my best grades yet while on it. Not much joint pain either. All the stuff about suicide and depression seem overhyped to me. I didn;t feel depressed at all; in fact, my moods steadily improved as my face started clearing up.</p>
<p>I’ve recommended accutane to a bunch of my friends, and it’s worked amazingly for every single one of them. And even better, my acne isn’t coming back.</p>