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Share your experience: submit a drug review
Below are Accutane (Isotretinoin) reviews, ratings, comments submitted by patients and caregivers. This information is not vetted and should not be cosidered as clinical evidence. | | Accutane review by 23 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | |   |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne and scarring |
| Dosage & duration: | | 50mg a day taken everyday for the period of 4 months |
| Other conditions: | | comedones |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | cleared the face of acne and some improved appearance of scars |
| Side effects: | | skin peeling and dry and chapped lips |
| Comments: | | I took 50 mg a day for 4 months as a last resort for acne. was quite effective with moderate side effects |
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| | Accutane review by 30 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Ineffective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne/oily skin |
| Dosage & duration: | | 30 mg per day taken once a day for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Skin cleared up immediately - the first time. |
| Side effects: | | Dry lips. |
| Comments: | | I took this drug twice - both times for 3 months at 30mg a day. The first time I took it my skin cleared up in 3 days. Not only did my acne disappear but my excessively oily skin turned normal in 3 days as well. Things were great for the time that I was on the medication but about 1 month after finishing it my skin returned to its old self - moderate/severe acne and extremely oily. I took the second course of this medicine about 1 year later. The second time was the same dose and time - 30mg per day for 3 months. It had absolutely no effect on my acne or oily skin the second time around. I am still battling this problem 10 years later. |
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| | Accutane review by 28 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | serve acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 2,5mg capsule taken one capsule per day for the period of 1 month |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Serve Acne has turned to middle |
| Side effects: | | Painfull muscles, problems with seeing at night |
| Comments: | | This drug is highly teratogenic ,females must take contraceptive tablets,so I did.
I didn't experience any serve side effects.It helped but the cost of therapy is horrible I resigned when I was told some of patient commited suicide maybe becouse of that drug. |
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| | Accutane review by 53 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 160 twice per day (dosage frequency: orally) for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | large pores |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The accutane dried my skin and it was not oily like before I took the drug. It helped in newly developing acne and cleared up the acne I already had. |
| Side effects: | | While it helped my face, it consequently dried out the skin on my whole body as well. This was the third time I had treatment with accutane. I still have some under-the-skin bumps but they are not as severe as they originally were. |
| Comments: | | This was an oral treatment and the regimine was twice daily. I had to constantly use a moisturizer and my lips became the most dried and cracked than they had ever been before. |
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| | Accutane review by 21 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 25mg taken once a day for the period of 6months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | benzoil peroxide (topical) | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | immediately stopped getting acne. |
| Side effects: | | red skin, dry skin |
| Comments: | | took pill every day and applied benzoil peroxide topically everyday for about six months. |
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| | Accutane review by 36 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 30 mg a day taken daily for the period of 2 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | My skin dried up and the acne went away. This was extremely effective. |
| Side effects: | | My face skin got a bit too dry, but manageable with lotion and drinking lots of water. |
| Comments: | | took 30 mg daily and had my blood work monitored frequently. |
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| | Accutane review by 43 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40mg daily taken 20 mg 2xday for the period of 4 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Permanently: cured of cystic acne. Temporarily: eliminated blackheads, smoothed skin texture, skin appeared "poreless". |
| Side effects: | | Dry skin and lips, increased susceptibility to developing blisters on feet if walking long distances without careful attention to socks and shoes. Stupidly used "Biore" skin strips early in the treatment to speed up removal of the blackheads and pulled all the skin off my nose. |
| Comments: | | I am 43 now but took Accutane back in my early 20's for moderate cyctic acne. I took a second course in my 30's for mild/moderate non-cystic acne which was probably hormone related. I absolutely loved taking Accutane and wished that I could take it again at a milder dosage to treat blackheads and have that smooth "poreless" skin again. It seems to speed up skin cell sloughing and I didn't need to exfoliate, just use a good cream. After years of taking antibiotics and using awful creams that made my skin dry and red, Accutane was a godsend. My older brother and sister have terrible deep scars from cystic acne (my sister had dermabrasion many years ago before the age of laser) but I do not have one scar from my cyctic acne. |
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| | Accutane review by 38 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | high (dosage frequency: daily) for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | hair loss, dry mouth, increase in acne |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | eventual reduction in acne |
| Side effects: | | made it worse before better, left me with scarring, dry mouth and hair loss |
| Comments: | | daily tablets |
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| | Accutane review by 38 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 60 mg taken 2 per day for the period of 6 mo |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | birth control | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The benefits were having clearer skin between month 2 and month 6.My skin did clear but i did still experience some smaller cystic breakouts, which was disappointing. |
| Side effects: | | the side effects were minimal and consisted of dry, cracked lips. Aquafor did help alleviate that situation. My mood was mildly affected. I did experience some mood swings from time to time. The other downside was having to go do the monthly bloodwork. Not having insurance and a tight schedule at work made it a little inconvenient and certainly expensive. |
| Comments: | | Overall it was helpful but there is alot involved in being on the drug and the side effects are tolerable overall. I wish the benefits had a longer residual effect or there were some other long term treatments for cystic acne that were effective |
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| | Accutane review by 34 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | ACNE |
| Dosage & duration: | | NOT SURE (dosage frequency: 1 pill/day) for the period of 5 MONTHS |
| Other conditions: | | NONE |
| Other drugs taken: | | NONE | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | REDUCED AMOUNT OF CYSTIC ACNE |
| Side effects: | | BALDNESS, SENSITIVITY TO SUNLIGHT, NIGHT VISION BLURRINESS |
| Comments: | | TAKE 1 PILL A DAY, BLOOD TOXICITY TESTS EVERY TWO WEEKS |
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| | Accutane review by 29 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne vulgaris |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1 kapsule (dosage frequency: every day) for the period of 4 month |
| Other conditions: | | good health |
| Other drugs taken: | | non | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The problem, Acne Vulgaris, did disappear |
| Side effects: | | Some days of severe depression, extremely dry skin |
| Comments: | | In the first few weeks I couldnīt see any changes in my skinīs condition but dryness. Then, after ca. 6-8 weeks the skin became more and more clean and soft. The treatment lasted about 4 month and was highly effective. No Acne after stopping to take the Accutane.
The skin would remain drier than usual several years after the treatment had been finished and it would be clean.
I can recommend it to people who have severe Acne vulgaris. |
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| | Accutane review by 30 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne vulgaris |
| Dosage & duration: | | 6 tablets taken daily for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | Nil |
| Other drugs taken: | | Nil | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Detoxing effect by pushing out the system through the skin. Initially, toxins will come through skin in the form of acne/pus. Then, toxin is supposed to be expelled through bowel movement. The total duration treatment is 3 months. |
| Side effects: | | Hairloss, extreme dry skin, itchiness, raises cholestorol level, damages liver. Patient must drink at least 2 litres of water per day. Patient must not go out in the Sun during treatment period. Patient must not eat fatty food as Roaccutane increase cholesterol level. Patient must not consumer alcohol as it will definitely and possibly permanently damage his/her liver. |
| Comments: | | Treatment period is 3 months/12 weeks. Dosage is 2 tablets after meal, 3 times per day. Patient is to have a blood test every 4-6 weeks to monitor liver function as well as cholestorol level amongst other side effects. |
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| | Accutane review by 36 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Severe acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40 MG taken twice daily for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | Birth Control Pills | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | My skin cleared up and my pores shrank significantly. My skin looked flawless. My pores have remained smaller long-term (5+ years post treatment). |
| Side effects: | | My skin got very dry, including my lips. I had to use a significantly heaver moisturizer and lip ointment to keep my skin/lips from cracking. |
| Comments: | | I had monthly lab work and doctor's visits to make sure I was having no ill effects, which I did not. I suffered no psychological symptoms or depression, in fact I felt less depressed because my skin looked so much better.
I would encourage patients and doctors not to be so frightened of this drug. It's a serious drug and bears monitoring, but lots of drugs are. I tried Retin-A and that made my skin look and feel horrible, as did other topical treatments. The benefits to your skin and your self-esteem make Accutane worth consideration if other treatments have not been effective. |
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| | Accutane review by 37 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Cystic Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 2pills one day/1 pill next day taken every day for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | complete cessation of my acne....effects lasted for about 2 -3 years |
| Side effects: | | very dry skin, bloody nose |
| Comments: | | took accutane orally aswell as applied certain creams to my face |
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| | Accutane review by 35 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | .5mg taken twice daily for the period of 2 rounds of 4 months |
| Other conditions: | | sensitive skin |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | After 20 years of visiting dermatologists and trying every topical and oral treatment available accutane is the only medication that COMPLETELY cured my acne, improved skin texture, pore size, and minimized the mild pits/scarring I had. It has been 10 years and my acne never returned. |
| Side effects: | | dry lips solved by lip balm
mild dry mouth; solved by drinking more water |
| Comments: | | I was started on a low dose, which cleared my acne in a couple of months but my doctor then had me repeat another 4 month session to make sure the clearing of my skin was permanent.
I know there has been a great deal of controversy about this drug and its side effects. But for me, it is the one medicine that I have taken that made an enormous difference in my life. |
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| | Accutane review by 18 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40mg/day taken daily for the period of 8 months |
| Other conditions: | | None |
| Other drugs taken: | | None | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Completely eliminated my acne while I was on the drug, however acne did return once I stopped, though not as bad. |
| Side effects: | | Dry skin, which was easily taken care of with a moisturizer.
Dry lips.
I didn't experience any of the other side effects often mentioned such as depression. |
| Comments: | | I would take 2x20mg pills daily. I needed to moisturize my face once a day also.
When i began I weaned myself onto the drug -- take 20mg for the first week before stepping upto the 40mg dose. |
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| | Accutane review by 15 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1.0 mg taken twice a day for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | dry skin |
| Other drugs taken: | | n/a | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The acne cleared up for the most part for about 6 months to a year afterwards. Then symptoms returned and there was no difference in the severity of the condition prior to treatment. |
| Side effects: | | Chapped lips, dry skin, sensitivity to light. |
| Comments: | | I was started off with a .5 mg dosage once a day then after two weeks twice a day then after that I was bumped up to 1.0 mg twice a day until 6 months of treatment was completed |
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| | Accutane review by 20 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Nodular acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 0.5 mg taken 2x daily for the period of 25 weeks |
| Other conditions: | | no other related conditions |
| Other drugs taken: | | no other medications | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Within one week of treatment superficial acne lesions were visibly reduced. Sebum production which had been excessive before beginning was significantly reduced (after course of treatment level increased to a more normal level). After one month of treatment no new acne lesions occured. By the end of treatment no new acne developed, and old lesions had healed. |
| Side effects: | | Side effects included moderate to severe dry skin. This condition was rectified by the topical application of "Aquafore" moisturizer. |
| Comments: | | Drug was taken in gelatin tablet at 0.5 mg per day. Drug treatment was carried out with bi-monthly visits to physician. After 25 weeks ended treatment successfully finished treatment. No recurrence of acne. |
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| | Accutane review by 24 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40mg/day taken 1/day for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | birth control pill | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | When taking the Accutane I noticed a decrease in the amount of acne I had on my face over the course of the treatment. |
| Side effects: | | My skin peeled greatly, praticularly around my lips and ears. I did use lotion in large amounts to combat this so it wasn't too much of a problem. I also had to stay out of the sun to avoid serious burning during the use of the drug. |
| Comments: | | I took one pill per day for 6 months, at the end of which I noticed a marked decrease in my acne. I could not get pregnant during the treatment because of the high risk of birth defects. I remained on birth control throughout the treatment. |
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| | Accutane review by 37 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | unknown (dosage frequency: twice daily) for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | acne |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Completely cleared up my acne b/4 my wedding. |
| Side effects: | | Very dry mouth, nose and skin. It essentially dried up the acne. It worked amazingly well and the effects lasted for probably a couple of years after a one time 6 month treatment. I wouldn't take it again however, b/c I wanted I to have babies and did have trouble conceiving years later but, it is unknown to me if this was a result of the acutane. I do have one biological son and one adopted son. |
| Comments: | | 2 capsules daily and lots of chapstick. |
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| | Accutane review by 21 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40 mg taken 2x/day for the period of 5 months |
| Other conditions: | | None |
| Other drugs taken: | | None | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Completely cleared up mild to moderate acne on face, neck, shoulders, back, and arms and should continue to stay clear for some length of time. |
| Side effects: | | Dry, chapped lips and dry, flaky skin especially after showers. Both were completely treatable with chapstick and good lotion. No serious side effects, and no alarming changes in liver function or triglycerides on blood tests. No depression as well. |
| Comments: | | I had slight to moderate acne that was just really annoying and was not fixed by any type of treatment, so I finally gave in and went on Accutane. After reading all the online horror stories I was scared out of my mind. However, I had a great experience on it. I took 80mg/day for 5 months and weigh 200 lbs (90 kgs) so it was about 1 mg/day/kg, which is a moderate to high dose I was told. My lips were pretty dry and cracked if I didn't put on chapstick all the time. I also had really dry skin if I didn't put lotion on my shoulders, arms, back, and face after showering. Everything else was 100% fine though. No nosebleeds, no depression, no hair loss, no unbearable side effects. These horror stories are overblown and rare, and tons of people have great results on it. My acne is gone 100% from all over my body and it is such a relief to not have to deal with it. On completion, my dermatologist told me he has prescribed it for 10 years and has never once had a case of depression and only 2 people have had bad blood tests. If you're tired of acne, give Accutane a shot. If the sides are too rough in your case then you can go off of it, but it's such a great drug if it works for you the way it did for me and many others like me. |
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| | Accutane review by 15 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Cystic acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1mg/kg body mass taken 3 10mg capsules, twice daily for the period of 4 months |
| Other conditions: | | N/A |
| Other drugs taken: | | N/A | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Almost complete removal of all existing and future acne. I took this drug with meals and could not be happier. Accutane changed the whole composition of my skin, changing me from very oily to normal/dehydrated in just over two weeks. The remainder of the dosage resulted in secureing my clarity and allowing my skin to look and feel better. |
| Side effects: | | Mild to moderate dryness on the lips and face. Mainly on either side of the face. I noticed very dry lips but peppermint beeswax lip balm seemed to fix the problem. Dryness seemed to be non existent with no blemishes but as soon as a cyst became visible it annhilated the surrounding area in dryness. |
| Comments: | | After trying topical treatments, subscription products and tetracycline for many months, and with no decernable difference, my family doctor put me on a cycle of Accutane. I was thrilled with the results, and could see the medication working almost instantly. The side-effects dimished after about 3 weeks. I used, and continue to use, 5% benzoyl peroxide gel cleanser and spot treatment (both Panoxyl brand) while on the medication. |
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| | Accutane review by 32 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | don't remember (dosage frequency: daily) for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The primary benefit was a reduction in acne. I would note that my acne returned several years later and I did a second course of Accutane. Since then my skin has been pretty clear (but I still have occasional breakouts). |
| Side effects: | | Extreme skin dryness and redness. |
| Comments: | | Was prescribed a course of Accutane. Took daily for 6 months. Was very effective. |
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| | Accutane review by 37 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | not sure (dosage frequency: 1 pill per day) for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Clear skin is priceless, to wake ach day confidant, self esteem in tact and out the door with out "needing" makeup..I would do it again. |
| Side effects: | | AWFULL! shedding skin,cracking lips,dry eyes,nose bleeds,depression,splitting cuticals,bad breath(from dry mouth0.The worst was the bone? pain. All my joints,knees,hips,wrists,fingers felt like they were grinding? I was in my 20's when I was taking Accutane & working as a bartender. From the constant washing of hands,peeling-squeezing of citrus,alcohol spilling on them; the cuticale dryness/cracking was torture-but paled in comparision to the aching pain in my hands & hips at the end of a shift. |
| Comments: | | I am know 37,STILL have great skin and(maybe time has fuzzied my memory of how truly bad it was..) I would take it again.
I wonder if being on it has any connection to the IBS I developed a few years later? Have read articles connecting the 2?
AND STILL, I would take it again. It really did work amazing |
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| | Accutane review by 21 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40mg taken twice daily for the period of 1 year |
| Other conditions: | | great treatment |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I have suffered from acne for 10+ years, and let me tell you, Accutane is the only thing that's worked for me. Improvement in skin in days... clear skin in a couple weeks. I have tried almost every treatment out there, and no results have compared to those I got from using Accutane. Take it from someone who's suffered a long time: try it and you won't be sorry. Be wary of some of the possible side effects, though. I didn't experience anything too drastic, but everyone's different. |
| Side effects: | | Dry skin and lips. Just keep lotion and chapstick handy, and you'll be fine. |
| Comments: | | the doctors started me off on high dosage and gradually reduced it. usually, it's two or three pills a day with meals. also, one drawback is the monthly blood tests and dermatologists visits. they are time-consuming, but worth it. |
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| | Accutane review by 25 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 20 mg taken once daily for the period of four months |
| Other conditions: | | Depression |
| Other drugs taken: | | Birth Control Pill | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Eventual Acne reduction. |
| Side effects: | | Dry skin and eyes, flaking skin and bloody noses. However, the most pertinent side effect was depression. |
| Comments: | | After struggling with acne throughout my teens, I was put on accutane with promises of a 'miracle drug.' My acne eventually cleared, but severe drug-induced 'flare-ups' of more acne were common, as well as feelings of depression. |
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| | Accutane review by 30 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40 mg taken 2x day for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | n/a |
| Other drugs taken: | | n/a | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Finally clear skin and less oil! Prior to accutane I HAD to wash my hair daily it was so oily but now I easily an go a day or two. My face and back were perfectly clear. |
| Side effects: | | I would have spent my last $2 on lip balm, even if I hadn't eaten in a week! Talk about dry and flaking! Don't even THINK about waxing. I didn't know that you couldn't wax (it was 12 years ago and there was less information about it then) it ripped my skin right off! Scary. About 4 ear after my first round I did another go with accutane because my acne had returned and now, 12 years later my skin is one again pretty bad. Unfortunately not bad enough for accutane. I mus say however, I have never been as bad as I was before my initial treatment and my back has stayed perfectly clear since then. |
| Comments: | | You have to really want it to get it! For females it is a pain because you have to do two initial pregnancy tests and then continue ever month to get a refill. They also monitor your blood for possible liver toxicity and your hdl levels. It is one pill 2x daily. |
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| | Accutane review by 40 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1 (dosage frequency: 2 x day) for the period of 3 mo |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I had the Accutane treatment in 1997 and the short term results (6 months - 1 years) were fantastic, with the exception that the treatment left a big scar on my face and there is nothing I can do about it. After a year I began to have acne breakouts again. Now, six years later, I am also having breakouts in my back and in new places like my neck, chest, behind my ears and (believe it or not!) some in my belly. When I when back for another opinion, they wanted me to have a second Accutane treatment -- no way! Also, after the treatment I can't live without chapstick... My lips are always very dry. Hope this helps somebody out there! Bea |
| Side effects: | | none |
| Comments: | | I had the Accutane treatment in 1997 and the short term results (6 months - 1 years) were fantastic, with the exception that the treatment left a big scar on my face and there is nothing I can do about it. After a year I began to have acne breakouts again. Now, six years later, I am also having breakouts in my back and in new places like my neck, chest, behind my ears and (believe it or not!) some in my belly. When I when back for another opinion, they wanted me to have a second Accutane treatment -- no way! Also, after the treatment I can't live without chapstick... My lips are always very dry. Hope this helps somebody out there! Bea |
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| | Accutane review by 37 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 60 mg taken once daily for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I had cystic acne, however within the first month i the acne reduced significantly! By the time i was at the 6 month point i had no acne at all. The only down side were the side effects... i felt joint pain, extreme dryness- esp my lips, very dry eyes. I was uncomfortable, however i have been 1 1/2 year without it and i barely get a little zit anymore. |
| Side effects: | | pain, extreme dryness- esp my lips, very dry eyes. There is a great deal of monitoring with this drug... so you really have to be committed to using it (i.e., blood work, frequent dermatology visits, one month waiting period for women to be sure you get on oral birth control, monthly phone questionnaire with the company). |
| Comments: | | I began the medication at a dose of 30 mg once daily and it was increased to 60 mg... which became the maximum i could handle without significant discomfort. |
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| | Accutane review by 29 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | the strongest dose (dosage frequency: 1x a day for a few months) for the period of 5 months |
| Other conditions: | | nothing else |
| Other drugs taken: | | birth control | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | My acne went away. I had horrible cystic acne and it finally went away. It took a bit, but thats fine. |
| Side effects: | | Extremely dry skin. Almost reptile like as i started the cycle. Really dry eyes and lips, had a problem wearing contacts. |
| Comments: | | I would go to dermatologist, he would look over face, would do some sort of vaccum facial to clear pores. He would ask how i was doing. I would cycle on and off the pills. Once done with pills I would come in a few times and have the vaccum facial that he had at the office. I loved that part! |
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| | Accutane review by 30 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 20mg per day taken daily for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | n/a |
| Other drugs taken: | | n/a | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I had tried every single thing to help my acne yet nothing worked. Then my doctor prescribed me Accutane and it seriously has been a miracle. Within a month my skin was almost completely clear. It felt so good to not wake up in the morning with a huge pimple on my forehead. This treatment has completely changed my life. |
| Side effects: | | None - I took accutane and it changed my life for the better...I've had none of these side effects that are sometimes reported. My nephew and best friend also took accutane and couldn't be any happier with the results...I'm not depressed, I don't have joint pains or headaches or whatever else is being reported... |
| Comments: | | I started with a low dose, then increased the dose after several weeks. The length of the treatment course was 6 months.
I had tried every single thing to help my acne yet nothing worked. Then my doctor prescribed me Accutane and it seriously has been a miracle. Within a month my skin was almost completely clear. It felt so good to not wake up in the morning with a huge pimple on my forehead. This treatment has completely changed my life. |
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| | Accutane review by 22 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Acne |
| Dosage & duration: | | 40 mg/day taken once daily for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Quick decrease in amount of acne; improved skin texture. Overall, the action of the drug was quite quick and effective, and my acne was resolved within the first 2 months of treatment |
| Side effects: | | I experienced dry skin like many other users of this drug, as well as some joint pain. Part of my treatment period was during the winter, during which I was also prone to nose bleeds and fragile skin. |
| Comments: | | I took two 20mg pills daily following a meal with a moderate amount of fat (more than 10 grams). The time of day I took the medication varied depending on when I would be consuming a moderate-fat meal. |
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