Acne! Help!

[NanaNina]

I've posted before on this and got good advice but wondering if anyone has been through this with their teenager. My DGD is 13 and has acne (spots on brow, around nose and chin) and is spoiling her otherwise beautiful face! She has had AB cream from GP - no good, oral ABs no good and now another cream which is not doing any good. I am trying to get my DIL to take her to a dermatologist and offering to pay and she is thinking about it. This isn't a MIL/DIL issue by the way - we got on very well and I think my DIL is a brilliant mom in every way, but she suffered with acne and I think is playing it down with DGD unless it really bothers her.

Any advice/experience would be greatly appreciated.

I think 13 is way too early to even consider Roaccutane. There are plenty of other options out there to try first. I would also recommend Dianette when she gets older - it's a contraceptive but works wonders.

I had suffered from the age of 12 with acne, and once I went on Dianette it cleared up. Unfortunately due to hormone-triggered migraines the doc wouldn't let me go back on it after I'd had my second child. The acne then got worse than ever. Finally at 36 I took the Roaccutane (for 18 months!) and have had clear skin ever since. I wish I had taken it years earlier, but the side effects are quite extreme and certainly not suitable for a 13-year-old.

My daughter is also 13 and suffering a little, but not too bad and easily coped by covering with makeup. For her, if it gets any worse I'd probably recommend Dianette at 15, then stopping that at around 22 to see if there is still a problem. If there is THAT would be the time to go the Roaccutane route.

BTW I was never depressed with Roac, just tired and in pain.

My son took roaccutane for about 5 months aged 16 - totally worked - not depressed at all - did get dried lips but just took lip balm. He had regular blood tests to make sure everything Ok with liver etc - 100 percent normal. spots a thing of the past. Several of his friends at school are on it too.

Please don't go for roaccutane :( Even if it doesn't effect the child then years later it's been shown to have effects on them. (I did a clinic in dermatology and it was always the last thing to be prescribed if possible) My DP took it age 16 and it made him very depressed but he dealt with it in anger, the problems lasted way beyond his teenage years and it was like his character changed within a couple of months of the treatment!

I did have bad acne as a teen and used zineryt lotion twice a day (You HAVE to stick with twice a day, if i missed a dose, I'd have a slight flare up!) and it did work for me, I also took some tabletss though I can't remember the name (wasn't roaccutane) to help with the acne on my back as a teen, will dig around and try find the name of it.

Please don't go for the pill or any strong drugs like R at this age. Hormones are all over the place at 13/14/15, they need to stabilise rather than adding more things to the mix.

I had severe acne and dianette did work for me aged 19 but I wouldn't have taken it at 13.

I used to work for clinique for 7 years and then chanel for 4. Honestly the best thing for spots is just wash with a simple cleanser morning and night and use oil free moisturiser and oil free make up.

And duac gel from the gp is also very good.

Roaccutane is most definitely prescribed in the US. DS is currently taking it.

When prescribed, girls have to go on the pill to prevent pregnancy.

DS (20) has to have monthly blood tests and visits to his Dr, and the prescription is renewed at those visits. The doctor phones the pharmacy to personally authorise the dispensing of the drug. DS's mental health is monitored at the monthly visits too.

For him, it was a last resort after cystic acne that was impervious to any other treatment, including months of ABs.

Take a look at acne.org. There is a regimen there that is very helpful for mild to moderate acne.