Anyone know anything about Roaccutane?

[LostinLondon]

My teenage DS has been prescribed Roaccutane for his acne and I'm more than slightly nervous about the possible side effects. Depression, hair thinning, sensitive skin, liver problems - all sound terrifying. He's about to start GCSEs and I really don't want to put him through anything that might make life more difficult for him than it needs to be at the moment. Would like to hear from anyone who has either tried it themselves or had a teenager on it.

It is really effective, but certainly has lots of side effects. Could he delay starting treatment till his GCSEs finish?

Make sure you have plenty of really strong moisturiser ready when he starts taking it, as it's essential to keep skin moisturised.

It's worked absolute wonders for someone I know who has used it. It's changed his life and his confidence is coming on in leaps and bounds.

The side effects, like with any drug, are scary though. I think like vegas said I'd put it off until after the GCSE's, then give it a go. It's worth a try

My DH was started taking this early on in our relationship. He had severe acne and it definitely did the trick with results seen fairly quickly. He did however suffer extremely dry flakey skin as a side effect. He was also sun sensitive while on it. He is also a very sunny natured person and he did have the occasional moody depressed spell but once the treatment was finished he was back to his usual self. Good luck with your decision.

I had it in my twenties and can honestly say it changed my life. Persistent acne was destroying my self esteem and roaccutane changed everything.

Side effects for me were sensitivity to sun (had to wear factor 50 even in May), nose bleeds and very dry skin on face which I kept moisturised. I used to wash with aqueous cream.

How long would he be on it for?

I have taken Roaccutane and DD (now 16) has taken 2 courses. We both only had the dry skin/eyes/lips side effects and nothing else and the skin improvement was dramatic and life-changing.
I think with monitoring the liver/blood risk on a normal course, if you don't take alcohol, are low. The consultant we saw (who does lots of medico-legal work and was involved in much of the research) says there are a very, very small number of people treated who develop severe depression ( others are depressed as a result of acne) so it helps if your son is around (not on holiday/college etc) during treatment and there is an argument for starting it immediately after his GCSEs rather than before.

I know how crippling acne can be to your self confidence but I really would proceed with caution before going on to roaccutane. I watched a documentary about it a few years ago that was an eye opener, I'll see if I can find a link. My brother and a friend of mine took it when we were teenagers, would have been a very new drug then. Was very effective on the acne, but not without side effects. My brother has had liver problems as an adult and also suffered bouts of depression, may be totally unrelated but I can't help but wonder. I don't doubt that it has been a miracle drug to many acne sufferers but I would be very cautious and monitor him closely. I would definitely consider delaying until after exams.

The documentary was called 'Dying for clear skin' and was shown on BBC Three - think it would be worth you taking a look. Not trying to scaremonger but don't think it is a drug to be taken lightly.

Thanks for all the advice so far. Really helpful. I'd already decided that waiting until after GCSEs made sense - would rather deal with one thing at a time!

That documentary sounds scary scratchansniff - I might try and find it. Want to go into this with as much info as possible.

I had it as a teenager and am mid thirties now. Was fine, very few side effects. A few more nose bleeds if I remember correctly. I have however still suffered from bad skin, not as bad as before but even now I still get breakouts. I've tried La Roche Posey Effaclar Duo serum and the face wash in same range on basis of recommendations on munsnet and that has been quite good. Took about 3 weeks but has helped my skin.

I took it. 2 courses, in my late teens early 20s... Huge difference. My brother did too. Amazing stuff. I think as long as you are aware of the side effects and know what to do, that will be fine. Acne is so depressing especially the angry pustular sort.

My dad had suffered from severe acne most of his life but finally was rid of it in his 30s when prescribed roaccutane. So when I started to show signs of serious acne we decided I'd need the same treatment. My dad was keen to get me on it before it had the chance to scar my skin, which it did to him. My experience was amazing. I went from incredibly miserable with my spotty skin (all over my face, back and chest) to feeling like a massive weight lifted when the spots were gone. I did have the dry skin as described by other posters and it wasn't pleasant but totally manageable. The one thing which has stuck with me is hayfever. I'd never had it before and nobody in my family does but ever since I was on roaccutane I've had horrendous hayfever. I always tell myself I'd rather it than the spots though. Good luck with your decision. My DCs are too little at the moment but i do look at their beautiful skin and dearly hope i haven't passed it on ??

If you were planning to delay the treatment till after GCSEs how about you try something else in the meantime? Roaccutane is synthetic vitamin A so how about double dosing him up with Cod Liver Oil? I've heard it has solved mild acne. It might be worth a try?