<p>Omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil are getting all sorts of press as almost wonder substances suitable for all sorts of conditions, problems, etc. The problem with this sort of attention is that skeptics like me tend to view this kind of “hype” with a lot of suspicion. </p>
<p>The only thing is that the substances play incredibly important roles in our diet. From enhancing a baby’s intelligence to reducing depression to improving skin to improving autism (or avoiding it altogether), the substances work because they are necessary parts of our diet. And the American diet is grossly deficient in these substances.</p>
<p>You don’t have to substitute it for Accutane or any other treatments – you could do these things in parallel rather one instead of the other – though if one has the patience that might actually be worth a try to try Fish Oil first, IMO.</p>
<p>There are many brands out there and this is no sales pitch. Here are a couple of good flavored ones:</p>
<p>Our soon to be 17-year old S2 started on Accutane about three weeks ago. His face has been disfigured by severe acne for four years. His dermatologist put him through scads of expensive stuff that didn’t work before putting him on this drug. I hope the scarring fades and wish they had done this sooner even though it is not easy. He has nosebleeds all the time (7-8 times a day), canker sores on the sides of his mouth that are so painful he has trouble eating and very dry lips. He will ask for the dosage to be reduced on his visit on Monday, but he still feels it is worth it. </p>
<p>He is a life guard in the summers, so the comments on sunlight are helpful. Hopefully, he will be finished by then. He also plays football, so we are glad he is doing this in the off season, although he hasn’t commented on any joint pain. His moods seem unaffected, which was my primary concern with the drug.</p>
<p>Another vote for the power of Accutane–again, after several less aggressive and ultimately useless treatments, my S started using it in the spring of his junior year of HS–and he is also allergic to penicillin. His only side effects were the lip dryness–and his skin is perfect now. By the fall of senior year, there was a night and day difference.</p>
<p>All three of my sons took Accutane – #1 at age 17, #2 at age 15, and</p>
<h1>3 at age 13. They were all living at home so it was easier (for dermatologist and monthly blood work). They all had exhausted creams and antibiotics. All three played brass/woodwind instruments so chapped, dried lips were a big problem.The younger two played tennis; they were more susceptible to sun burns while on Accutane. Dermatologist recommended sunscreen plus some treatment following tennis (can’t recall – maybe Advil or Tylenol?). All three boys had great results with Accutane.</h1>
<p>Friends’ son had two cycles of Accutane with no improvement so he had laser treatments which helped lots. My nephew will probably have laser treatments as he was treated for cancer as a toddler and they have tried creams and antibiotics; MDs do not want him on Accutane.</p>
<p>Yes, accutane tends to be medicine of last resort for severe, cystic acne. Be aware, however, that if this is your son’s first visit to the dermatologist, he probably won’t prescribe Accutane until some ohter meds have been tried. </p>
<p>There is another new product that doesn’t have as many negative sideaffects that is showing a lot of promise. Has only been on market since about July or so.</p>
<p>It is Differin 3%. I know many of you will say you tried Differin but that was probably Differin 1% since this new formulation has been out less than a year. The new 3% formulation is much more effective. So far, I know 4 people who have been on it for whom all else including antibiotics, Duac, Retin A, etc. had ceased being effective. My daughter was one visit away from Accutane treatment when this new Differin came out. As a matter of fact, she was the first patient her dermatologist gave it to as it had become available only that week. Since he had no experience with it, after talking with her, they decided together it was worth a try before doing Accutane since she already has some drug sensitivities. He gave her a month’s worth of samples and by the end of 30 days, there was a remarkable difference. So much so that he began prescribing it more frequently after her return visit. Also, once your acne has cleared, it can be used for spot treatment only which Accutane isn’t good for. Both differin formulas are prescription only.</p>
<p>Those people I know that used Accutane had good results but it did NOT eliminate acne for good in all cases. However, with the Accutane side effects and extra hassle of monthly blood tests, etc, I much prefer my daughter being on the Differin 3% and am glad the new Differin worked better than the old 1% formula without as many negative side effects.</p>
<p>I know I’ve already said my piece, but if you’re a parent on the fence, PLEASE considering allowing your kid to try accutane. The inconveniences of chapped lips and monthly blood tests pale in comaprison to the literal restoration of your self esteem.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t prevent a kid from taking Accutane, either. However, I am VERY glad that the one who took it was the one who isn’t a wind instrument player because we had no idea of the severity of the chapped lips problem. If it had been the other kid (an All-State sax player) who took Accutane, it could have been a disaster. </p>
<p>Be aware that the principles of good medical practice (and the requirements of some insurance companies) may require your child’s doctor to try other treatments, and for those treatments to fail, before referring the child to a doctor who can prescribe Accutane.</p>
<p>This means that there is a several-months delay between wanting Accutane and getting it.</p>
<p>For a high school student for whom the months before going to college are ticking away, this is a good reason to start the process NOW. Because of all the extra rules and need for monthly doctor visits, using Accutane while attending college (especially a far-away college) can be exceedingly inconvenient. Getting the preliminary trials of other treatments and the four- or five-month course of Accutane over with before starting college would be much less hassle.</p>
<p>By the way, I don’t believe any of the nonsense about Accutane and mental health effects. Lots of young people take Accutane. Lots of young people develop emotional issues. I suspect that most of the supposed “links” between the drug and such issues are coincidences. My son took two of the most stigmatized drugs (in terms of mental health effects), Accutane and Paxil, SIMULTANEOUSLY, and absolutely nothing bad happened.</p>
<p>I’m with the group most in favor of accutane (and for females it’s required compadre birth control pills or shots) for stubborn out of control acne . Doctor shop until you find somebody to prescribe it. D had enough issues going on with her facial appearance as a teen (impending jaw surgery), we weren’t going to let acne be another one. </p>
<p>D and I just sat down with the Doc and told him her history and said “Bring out the elephant gun”. It was a wonderful decision and the frequent nosebleeds , dry skin, and horribly chapped lips could have been twice as bad and she’d have gladly accepted them. 6 months on, 6 months off, 6 months on and now she is virtually acne free (except some T-zone at the start of her cycle). </p>
<p>What kind of acne? We didn’t wait long enough to find out what kind. Acne >>> prescription creams don’t work>>>> elephant gun. I’m a believer and I’ve told dozens of folks about it. Those that tried it are acne free. There ARE some mood disturbances but nobody has flown a small plane into a big building yet. Be careful, be watchful but do it.</p>
<p>^^^This is the reason you should rely on professionals to make the treatment call, and not on the Internet. Does Accutane cause problems? FDA thinks there is enough evidence to put a warning about mental health issues on the patient’s information. If your doctor says “no”, do not try to get this stuff from the internet and self-medicate.</p>
<p>Ds also experienced night and day difference with Accutane for cystic acne. </p>
<p>Be aware, however, for those wanting to attend a Service Academy or a civilian school with ROTC Scholarship, it does throw up a red flag when being medically evaluated through DoDMERB. You will have to provide all medical/lab documentation of your treatment. </p>
<p>Accutane truly does have an effect on some kids psychologically, and that is why they are monitored closely via physician interview and monthly blood tests (can negatively affect the good cholesterol levels, too I believe). I am also thinking I read somewhere now that there is a possible link to heart valve problems, but don’t take that w/o a lot of research as I don’t remember where I read that. </p>
<p>Younger ds is being treated differently for acne as his is not cystic. I think it is a Retinol-A treatment, with face wash and cream to follow. He just started on it a week ago, and doctor wants him to try it for 6 months to be re-evaluated after that time period. If this is not strong enough, dr. will try something different. </p>
<p>BTW, our pediatrician offers the treatments, so we did not have to see a dermatologist.</p>
<p>Bunsen, the warnings are there for legal reasons. There’s a correlation, sure, but not a causative agent. Is it really surprising that teenagers with severe acne commit suicide at a higher rate than the rest of the population?</p>
<p>My son had severe acne. We went to a naturopathic Dr. She advised no dairy,rx’d vitamin A(could only be dispensed by her) and other vitamins. He was clear in 6 weeks.</p>
<p>I was about 30 when I went through two courses of Accutane treatment. This was about 15 years ago. My wonderful dermatologist (who sadly died young of a chronic illness) had exhausted EVERY other possibility. Working through all those other treatments was worse than the Accutane by far because nothing worked. I didn’t have constant, terrible acne, but did have cysts/nodules in 1 place or another that were horribly painful and incredibly ugly. It made me cry to look in the mirror and I hated having to leave the house during these episodes. You don’t have to be a teenager to suffer from really low self-esteem!</p>
<p>I cast my vote for Accutane. Aside from the worst headache of my entire life after the very first dose and severely dry lips and mouth, I can’t say enough about how it changed my life. All these years later, I’m almost completely free of cystic acne – I still get one cyst occasionally, but nothing like they were back then.</p>
<p>My recommendation for the dry lips is 2 great products by Beauticontrol (nope, I don’t sell them!) called Lip Balm and Lip Appeel. I still use them because they’ve so addictive. The Lip Appeel lasts forever!</p>
<p>Our son was on Accutane last year for five months. The acne on his face was severe but his back acne was the worst our dermatologist had ever seen. The treatment worked wonders and he has no scarring and no regrets. He plays football, basketball and baseball with nothing negative to note. We began the treatment in spring so he would experience the brunt of the skin and lip dryness during our humid months of summer. Even so, he was still extremely dry and I was constantly making him apply tons of sunblock during baseball season. He continues to experience dryness, but not as extreme. </p>
<p>I was very apprehensive when it was first suggested by the dermatologist, but now would let our son repeat the treatment if necessary.</p>
<p>Both sons have been on Accutane. Only symptoms: VERY DRY skin, lips, eyes. GREAT results. Closely monitored by dermatololgist with blood tests, etc. I would recommend it to anyone with acne problems.</p>
<p>I truly question if the mood swing concerns about this med are overblown.</p>
<p>I am wondering how severe acne really has to be for Accutane to be considered an option. Did your kids have serious cystic bumps or are you talking about surface pupules/pastules, just resistant to other meds?</p>
<p>I am in my early twenties, moderate-to-moderately-bad acne since early teens but never needed to seriously medicate until, for some reason, now. Tried nearly all topical stuff (adverse reactions with all topical retionoids including Retin-A, Tazorac and Differine), azeleic acid, benzoyl peroxide, over-the-counter salicylic acid stuff, Rosula, and Duac; also Yasmine birth control (without completing 3 months, stopped because of annoying side effects like yellowing of the eyes, significant weight gain), the antibiotic doxycycline with no positive results, and now minocycline antibiotic for around 7 months, in combination with Duac and Rosula creams. Also just started ortho-tricyclen birth control in addition to that. Minocycline seems to have worked the best at the initial stage, before stopping after 3-4 months; then the acne came back as before. It worked a second time, though not as well (developing resistance). It’s bad to be on antibiotics for a long time, but it basically keeps the acne under control, albeit superficially. </p>
<p>I would like to avoid Accutane at all costs, because I think I would suffer more side effects and don’t want to expose myself to the additional health risks. I’m kind of running out of options at this point, though, and I was wondering whether your kids have experience with alternative medicines. We’re talking about surface blackheads and whiteheads which can be numerous, sometimes red bumps, but not deep cystic acne – just very persistent pimples. Some superficial scarring but makeup does the job okay.</p>
<p>I just don’t think that the drug’s side effects, for young women especially, are to be taken lightly, but neither should antibiotics be taken forever.</p>
<p>Mrzeni- my son was on most of the things you were. The alternative treatment was what worked, while he continued on antibiotics. If you do the alternative treatment make sure the provider has the credentials (our provider was a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine, & had a MS in Oriental Medicine.</p>