Damage Done By Accutane?

When the damage caused by a medicine is bigger than the benefits it produces then that medicine can’t be good. I’d ban Accutane if I could. Not only that it didn’t drastically change my face but it also cost me nerves and money to reduce the side effects. Of all possible side effects (and the list is very long - the influence on the baby, suicidal thoughts, dry skin and lips, sores on the face, nose bleeding, tiredness, weakness, headaches, vomiting and God knows what else) I had to end up with the most unpleasant one (and also not really common) - rectal bleeding. Just rectal bleeding and nothing else. No symptoms to make it more logical and to indicate that it might have something to do with Accutane. So my doctor spent about six months trying to solve the mystery of my rectal bleeding. I was healthy, good - looking, all tests were normal, no sign of any disorder... Just the annoying, painful and extremely unpleasant rectal bleeding. I simply didn’t know what to do; it was like having a period all the time, only with a sense that something isn’t right down there. When he finally discovered the cause and told me the reason of my bleeding I just stopped with Accutane treatment. And within a month everything was normal again. I could blame my doctor for not asking me about my anti - acne treatment (he must have seen my face - Accutan wasn’t that helpful), but I won’t. He did his best. I blame Accutan. Don’t take it.

What your dermatologist saying is: Don't be pregnant before, on, during or a month after taking the drug! Because it is a teratogenic. This means that it can cause birth defects.



I am on it for 5 weeks and have only experiencing minor side-effects (dry lips and a bit of inflamation on the acne on my face, which I am taking anti-inflamatories for).



2 out of 2 of my friends (both female) on it have reported positive outcomes, saying that thier acne 'hasn't come back'.

i'm a female who weighs 138lbs my doctor had me start on 40mg a day for 10days, and after that i switch to 80mg a day. After a month on 80mg a day my body hurt my hips, my knees my muscles, everything. My blood results showed that my c.k was extremely higher and i was at risk of having permanent muscle cell damage. I lowered my dosages for the remainder of my treatment to 40mg a day. I have been off accutane for exactly a month, my body is still very fatigued and my joints and muscle hurt frequently and easily. my c.k is back to normal, i was just curious if anyone knows how long it takes for the side affects such as the ones mentioned above to disppear or is there a chance i may have had some permanent damage.

I had severe acne when I was a teenager and was on Accutane for 6 months just before I reached high school. Being on Accutane was no easy thing: I had depression, dry lips, and a terrible rash on the sides of my arms. I was sensitive to light and my skin flushed really easily. Honestly, though, these reactions were bearable compared to the level of acne I would have had to suffer through. My skin cleared up wonderfully with the treatment. It has been nearly 10 years since I went on Accutane and my skin is still absolutely clear and beautiful.

Only your dermatologist knows what is best for you, and I can say from experience that Accutane is not a drug you fool around with. You have to watch yourself carefully and make sure that you report any signs of severe side effects. However, it can also be a life-enhancing drug when taken with the appropriate, cautious attitude. If your dermatologist recommended that you use it, it might not hurt to try it and just see what happens. It might be the answer to your acne problem--and might be the result of increased confidence as well. :-)

I was on Accutane about 14 years ago, I had terrible acne at the age of 21, 22. I did 6 months of treatment and it cleared up my skin beautifully. However, the reason I am checking this site 14 years later is...Around 3 to 4 years after the accutane, my knees began swelling. Now, my knees are awful. I can't bend down at all, and I'm only in my 30's! I was always active until this swelling became so overwhelming. I've had 3 surgeries on my knees, doctors are scratching their heads. They don't know what is causing it. So, I started thinking about past medications I have taken and thought maybe accutane could be the cause. So, just wondering if anyone else has heard of similar problems.

I was on accutane for exactly 5 months and I could have been happier. I was originally supposed to be taking it for 6 but I contracted Hepatitis A from A restaurant which inflamed my Liver making my last month of treatment null an void. I have no clue where some of these people are getting these "symptoms". My mother and father are physicians and rectal bleeding, severe muscle deterioration and depression are not yet scientifically linked with accutane. I had moderate acne and after taking the medication my pores have decreased immensely, I no longer break out and my skin is extremely smoothe. One side effect I did get, which all get, are extremely dry lips and face around the mouth. I avoided sun when my skin was dry but after three months on the treatment my skin no longer was a cracked. when that happened i started sun tanning and being outside a lot more. If my children have acne I would push for accutane, It truly is a miracle drug that cures acne. And if most did there research, the side effects that are so frightening happen to less than 3 % of all who have taken the medication.

yes it will kill a baby embryo and in my opinion cause phychosis, suicidal thoughts, severe mood swings. i would reccomend proactiv way before anything this strong.look up severe side effects

Accutane is one of the worst drugs ever to hit the market in my opinion.  I was on it when I was 17.  It made me hallucinate for a long time.  18 years later I still have yellow coloring around my mouth and on my upper neck.  I went to an eye doctor a week ago.  He asked me if I had ever been on Accutane.  I asked him how he could tell.  He said "by the color and texture of your skin and by looking at the insides of your eyelids."  He said I'm probably not producing enough mucus all over my body.  I also still have a static feeling in my head like "snow" on a TV or like an untuned radio.  I hear all this static all the time.  It's subtle but always there.  So I believe it also messed up my brain permanently. 

I used accutane 20 years ago. It was the worst thing I could have done to my skin. It wrinkled me permanently. I had no wrinkles before I started the 4 month treatment. It took all the protective oils out of my skin. I would never recommend this to anyone. I should have stayed on the antibiotics. I would much prefer acne to wrinkles all over & I still have hormonal acne!!!

Accutane nearly cost me my sanity. Within a few weeks of taking it I began to lose all my motivation, My skin started to dry and crack, my face burned every moment as if doused in acid. I began to have the most indescribably violent and disturbing hallucinations. All day and night I heard screaming of men women and children. I had flashbacks to places and times I had never been. I became senselessly belligerent and had several brawls with friends and family. The list literally goes on and on and on and on.  ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** private e-mails not allowed*** Please read our Terms of Use

This drug has, without a doubt, ruined my life.

My acne wasn't severe, and I took it in 2005.

They didn't tell me it was a chemotherapy drug.

I'm currently 21, and sitting at home unemployed, and worrying about my penis/testicles, because ... well, something's not right.

I eat super healthy, and am doing all I can to cope but it isn't enough.

I feel so suicidal and depressed and I don't think there is any way out of this.

I believe there are a lot more sufferers than thought.

The stats that say 3% or whatever. BS.

Just because I didn't report side effects means I'm the 97% that's okay.

This drug ruins lives, and people aren't made aware of the risks.

Acne shouldn't require a terrible drug like this.

Some people just seem to get lucky when taking it.

I must be very unlucky, and now my life's down the drain.

I'm spending so much of my own money now trying to get better, and a new problem just crops up.

I had so much going for me, and now I'm just a walking sight of bad health.

f**k this drug, and the greedy bastards who ruin lives.

 

Stefan Lay,

 

Author of 'Roaccutane: The Truth', available on Amazon.

I have currently been off accutane for about two years now. I went through the six month process, taking a pill in the morning and at night. The side effects were horrible. During the 4th month I had been very irrational in my emotions and ended up running away twice. My head is clear in thoughts now though. I had rectal bleeding, bloddy nose, super dry and chapped lips, tired in the day a lot! Which pissed me off that I couldnt sleep because school. It cured my really really bad acne and I'm super greatful for that. Side effects still are present even now though, I will have rectal bleeding once in a while, which led to believe I had chrons disease or somthing like on the commercials, so I went to the doctor and got a finger where the sun dont shine, ouch... But everything checked out fine. It's thought that I am still very dry inside from accutane and it will occasionally rip the rectum as a big log comes out me butt. I'm 16 now, was 13 when i started and 14 when I stopped. Weight loss also happened, I was a slightly chubby boy, and after became much skinnier, especially after all the pot smoking. DO THE TREATMENT, beware the side effects...

(I JUST FOUND OUT I POSTED HERE BEFORE LOL SO UPDATE!!)I had taken accutane at the age of 12-13 for a six month process of a pill in the morning and night. My acne was so terrible at such a young age that I began to think it would last my entire life, my mom has had horrible acne all of her life and she was scared it was in my genetics as well. MY dermatologist prescribed me this drug that was either going to be a life saver or life ruin er. The six months was hell, I needed water so very often to keep from feeling dehydrated and sick, much rectal bleeding, nose bleeds, cracked lips. My moods swings cause me to run away from home twice, I felt bonkers. Surely though my acne started to vanish, until finally one, the day ill never forget I had not one pimple! It was a magical feeling... Im 17 now though and I'm sad to say my rectal bleeding has been going on for years. I went to the doctors to get a finger up my butt when I was 15 and he said it was probably just my body still recovering from the dryness caused. I will maybe get a pimple or two every blue moon but for the most part my face if zit free. My body however is still zit prone easily. It doesn't bother me much at all though. Honestly the only reason I'm here is because I just had a lot of blood in my last poop and came here cause I was worried. I won't recommend it until I find out if I'm okay in a week. But so far CLEAN FACE>MINOR RECTAL BLEEDING

isotretinoin( accutane, curacne, roacutane e.t.c) can be taken for oral use in smaller doses, 20mg daily for a prolonged period of time(a year or more) and have the exact same effects with large doses used for less time. the bennefit of this kind of therapy is that you avoid the severe side effects of the drug. you will experience only a light form of face and lips dehydratation that can be resolved with a common mousturizing cream. before you do something discuss with a good studied dermatologist. best of luck.