Advice for acne when OTC products haven't worked?

[BFBackne]

Hello all. My DP has chronic acne on his back. It extends from the top of his back all the way down to the top of his arse cheeks. So far he has tried various products you can get over the counter. This has included Acnecide cream, Quinoderm, Clearasil, tea tree oil, and various creams that are marketed as being for spot removal. So far nothing has worked and it's as bad as ever. He has been asking about using a sunbed to see if it helps, but I've no idea if that would work. I've heard of Roaccutane tablets, but he is slightly nervous about trying them as it can apparently worsen existing depression and cause suicidal thoughts. He has been depressed in the past but is ok at the moment. I am curious if anyone here has had acne and if so, what worked for you?

My DD had awful back acne - she needed spinal surgery last year meaning we had 6 weeks to completely get rid of it, otherwise they wouldn’t operate due to the infection risk..

What ended up working for her

• Salicylic acid body wash
• Exfoliating daily
• Clinisept spray (it’s amazing stuff!! Gets rid of all acne causing bacteria + fungus, especially good before + after exercise as sweating was a big trigger for her)
• Aveeno or any other gentle non-comodogenic moisturiser, be very liberal with it
• Very controversial but we were desperate.. a few short sunbed sessions helped things immensely, obviously not ideal though and we both understood the risks

This took DD from bordering on needing Accutane to almost completely clear, she still gets the odd spot on her back but nothing like it used to be

I have just visited the Dr's with my ds, who is 14, due to bad acne not clearing after a year and numerous over the counter products. Dr has prescribed a 3 month course of Lymecycline tablets and a cream called Duac for any inflamed red areas. So far the spots are clearing nicely and no side effects.

If it's very serious then you need to see a dermatologist. My DS's acne continued to get worse under GP treatment and when he finally saw a dermatologist, she said the acne was too deep and infected for any topical treatments to work. Roaccutane worked really well to clear up the acne but he has been left heavily scarred. He had to have regular blood tests while he was on the Roaccutane to check his liver was okay and he didn't have any psychological/depressive effects from it.