Dr. Fulton answering a question about retin-a
I am using Retin A® but I do not seem to clear up.

When I developed Retin A® in 1969, it was quite an irritating formula. The more the skin peeled the better the acne would respond. However, during this peeling phase all the acne impactions are coming out so there may be an appearance of flare up of the acne condition as all of the impactions are being evacuated. Once all the pores are clear, the acne is under control and not visible . Also, if a patient is considering Retin A®, they should use the Retin A® gel and not the Retin A® cream. The Retin A® cream contains isopropyl myristate, which is an aggravator of the acne condition and sometimes patients will get worse because the formulation of the Retin A® cream. There are also new formulations of the Retin A® on the market, such as Micro Retin A® that are better formulated creams than the previous product. The key is to keep the skin visibly peeling in order to get a rapid clear up. If there is no peeling whatsoever, your particular formulation is not working very effectively on your skin. You should see at least a little peel once a week to know you are at the right therapeutic level. Also, you may need to work with your physician or esthetician during this early phase to help extract out all the acne impactions that are coming to the surface. This will lead to a more rapid resolution of the problem

hope this helps a feel people, maybe you guys ahve read it.
Particularly interesting part is that he wants deliberate irritation (visible peel) for acne to rapidly clear up.

i jsut started peeling and im in week 6 or 5 of retin a micro is that weird?

no, I don't think it is, I didn't start peeling till week 7 I think.

My skin is not peeling. The acne is getting worse, and it is "sitting" on my face not really doing anything.

HELP!

For how long have you been using it. It took me 3 months to see improvement in my skin.

I think that it has been a month.
I am just scared to death that it won't clear up.
My hyperpigmentation is HORRIBLE....(I am Black)....so every bump has the potential to leave a nasty black mark on my face. I am just not so sure this is worth it.
I wasn't even going to use it until I used BP and it clogged my skin to no end.
*SIGH*.

How long AFTER STOPPING using retin-a can I exfoliate?

What :S The cream makes acne worse? The retard doctor just prescribed me the RETIN-A cream that contains Isopropyl Myristate..

Huh? Something's up with this. Why would they continue to produce the cream if the gel formulation is so much more effective, as well as less irritating?

Retin A is not just used for acne, it can help wrinkles, poor skin texture etc I think the cream is designed for patients who have these issues and possibly drier mature skins rather than people with acne.

I don't seem to peel at all though, not even redness, and yet I'm using the second strongest dosage. Does it necessarily need to peel to be effective?

ive been using the retin a CREAM for so long now, a year and it has improved my acne alot but i definetly still get pimples...would i be able to switch right over from the cream to the gel without like another initial breakout or something like that...and as well i dont really peel anymore, is this a bad sign?? thankss

I wonder if he thinks using a moisturizer to stop the peel is bad.

he doesn't.

I've been on it 4 weeks and I have noticed very light peeling but nothing serious. I don't have inflammed acne (or haven't for 3 or so months) but I have a lot of comedones. I've noticed that the clogged pores are surfacing though. I'm concerned that it's not working for me

I have been on Retin-A for 4 days now, and surprisingly enough I am already over what I believe was my IB, and started peeling within two days, but it takes longer for most. What I did, that worked very well (pay attention if you are just about to start retin-a or may in the future) that I would do as much preemptive striking as possible before you start the retin-a to reduce the chance for an IB. I was on doxycycline 100 mg for 5 days with Duac gel (I used it morning and night when I didn't put the Retin-A on) to attempt to reduce as many things as possible. My cheeks got really bad when I started Retin-A but within two days (and NOT touching them) they went away. Now I am very clear with just the minor dark marks that I get after pimples peeling off with no lasting marks. My brother used Retin-A and his results were just like mine, but everyone is different. Consult your dermo and ask any questions you have. A great resource is the retin-a website (www.retinamicro.com) which has great information for people using Retin-A. And always REMEMBER SUNSCREEN. Neutrogena Clean Feel SPF 45 is my favorite as it goes no very clean and fresh.

I made the switch(I take tazorac) ... and yes I did experience another Initial breakout. I was using the cream for about a month, but it made me EXTREMELY oily. So I read up on Tazorac and the cream is not even meant for acne, the gel is. Come to find out, the derm had prescribed me the gel but the pharmacy screwed up and gave me the cream instead. Any way, I've been on the gel version of Taz for about 2 weeks now and my face is purging again. I started taking Doxycycline today to help minimize the bacteria and breakout.

Its funny cuz I never got worse using retin A. I just kept getting better even from the start.

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