5 replies to this topic

[Arpazia]

Hey, guys! I usually post in Prescription Meds but have some information and questions for you. First of all, I am nearing the end of my Accutane treatment and have had excellent results thus far. My skin is clear but still littered with red marks. Due to the dry-skin effect of Accutane, my dermatologist recently prescribed a cortisone lotion called Desodine. It is working slowly to relieve the dry skin but the nice, added benefit is that it is also fading my red marks.

From what I’ve heard, this result might only be temporary but, for this week of Desodine, it is a really nice result. Has anyone here had any experience with Desodine or another cortisone lotion? If so, please tell me your story. I am really hoping that perhaps I found the cure for all of us but, if it’s already been tried, then alas…back to lemons and water!

[moconnor]

Hey, guys!  I usually post in Prescription Meds but have some information and questions for you.  First of all, I am nearing the end of my Accutane treatment and have had excellent results thus far.  My skin is clear but still littered with red marks.  Due to the dry-skin effect of Accutane, my dermatologist recently prescribed a cortisone lotion called Desodine.  It is working slowly to relieve the dry skin but the nice, added benefit is that it is also fading my red marks.

From what I’ve heard, this result might only be temporary but, for this week of Desodine, it is a really nice result.  Has anyone here had any experience with Desodine or another cortisone lotion?  If so, please tell me your story.  I am really hoping that perhaps I found the cure for all of us but, if it’s already been tried, then alas…back to lemons and water!

What % cortisone is Desodine, and how long have you been advised to use it for?

You need to be really careful when using steroid creams on your face as they can (with long-term use) cause a condition called Steroid Rosacea which, perversely, will make your face constantly red and in time can lead to acne-type bumps on your face that aren't acne at all, but immune cells leaking from damaged blood vessels up through your dermis. I'm speaking from experience My condition was caused by using a 1% hydrocortisone cream, which the doctor prescribed to help control my sebderm.

Mike

[Arpazia]

Eeek!!! I need to post this information asap in the Prescription Medication Forum since I was just raving about the disappearance of red marks. I suppose since my skin is feeling significantly softer, I should stop using it immediately. My dermatologist didn’t give me specific instructions regarding this so I’ll need to talk to him as well.

Thanks for this vital information, Mike. You probably just saved me from a lot of grief.

BTW: What did you do to get rid of the redness and non-acne bumps? Are you still struggling?

P.S. I have no idea what the dosage is because I left the bottle at home but will let you know when I find out.

[moconnor]

Eeek!!!  I need to post this information asap in the Prescription Medication Forum since I was just raving about the disappearance of red marks.  I suppose since my skin is feeling significantly softer, I should stop using it immediately.  My dermatologist didn’t give me specific instructions regarding this so I’ll need to talk to him as well.

Thanks for this vital information, Mike.  You probably just saved me from a lot of grief.

BTW: What did you do to get rid of the redness and non-acne bumps?  Are you still struggling?

P.S.  I have no idea what the dosage is because I left the bottle at home but will let you know when I find out.

Didn't mean to panic you Arpazia! I think you'll be okay if you've just started using it - I'm really just saying not to use cortisone on your face long term, no matter how tempting it is. I did a) because it's what my dermatologist prescribed, so I thought it would be safe, and b) it really was the ONLY thing that seemed to control my sebderm. I kind of got used to the fact that the skin on my face always looked pink, because that was such a vast improvement from when my face was covered in nasty sebderm blotches - lesser of two evils if you like. People always used to say "do you have sunburn on your face?" - in winter

I carried on using the steroid cream because everytime I stopped, my sebderm broke out badly - I now know this is called Steroid Withdrawal or Rebound - and basically your skin goes through this long process whereby the cortisone slowwwwwwly works its way out of your system. The length of time it takes can depend on how long you used the cortisone cream for. Then I started to get these strange bumps on my face... and I had no idea what was going on, I have no faith in derms anymore, so I hit the internet.

The Yahoo Rosacea Group (http://rosacea.ii.net/toc.html and http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/rosacea-support/) has been a godsend to me, and is FULL of people who have steroid rosacea from having used steroid creams longer than they ought to have (as well as thousands who have developed rosacea in other ways).

I havent used a steroid cream now since October 2004, and the amazing thing is, having been through the steroid withdrawl I mentioned where my skin was absolutley horrible for a couple of months, the redness and bumps (known as papules and pustules) have subsided ENORMOUSLY. One legacy of the rosacea is that I flush very easily - if it's too hot, too cold, if I drink a glass of wine, eat somethign spicy, etc etc, my face becomes very red and stays that way for ages. There are laser treatments that I could try to overcome this in time (the underlying blood vessels are damaged now, because of the cortisone), but they're costly. This is why I go on about the power of using products with natural ingredients, because of my experience with chemicals, and because they work for me now - I use natural products with Zinc Oxide, Sulfur, Tea Tree Oil, and Extract of Canadian Willowherb

Sorry that was a bit long, hope I put your mind at rest!

Mike x

[Arpazia]

It’s better to be slightly panicked then flushed in this case. I recently posted a rave regarding this medication and had to warn everyone not to take my advice because of the possibility of the side effects. I want to help people look better, not worse and I don’t want to be responsible for creating another medical condition in someone who is looking for a cure.

I work for attorneys and have worked medical malpractice in the past so I completely understand anyone who has a fear of doctors. I’ve found that the people on Acne.Org are considerably more informed than any dermatologist I’ve seen thus far. Recently, I read a post from another member who broke out as a result of oral steroids. Doctors should be more careful. Acne is something that happened to me naturally. I feel terrible for people who suffer skin disorders as a result of bad doctors. I can’t imagine the level of frustration.

I haven’t tried any of the others but I completely agree that Sulfur rocks. I take MSM and have used Klaron to dry up a lot of those annoying pimples. How does Tea Tree Oil work? Does it help with the redness?

At some point during my research, I ended up at a Rosacea website and found it really informative. It has a list of all the treatments used and it helped me know which medications do what.

Again, thank you so much for all this information! You have been so helpful and since it’s only been a week with Desodine, I think I’m in the clear. I was just thrilled for a brief moment that I might have discovered something incredibly resourceful in removing red marks, forgetting that it is a steroid and, therefore, probably doing more damage than good.

[moconnor]

It's possible your derm ony meant you to use the Desodine in the short-term, and that would be okay - the problem is that, like you experienced, you find that it works well and so you want to carry on using it. Then you discover hydrocortisone creams are available over the counter... I think the general consensus is that you're only supposed to use it (sparingly!) for about 21 days or so. My derm gave me SIX TUBES to use. That was a pretty poor error of judgement on his part, there's no two ways about it.

I've lived with the permanently red face caused by topical steroids for 10 yrs. There have been times where I have been so utterly depressed about it. I slowly came to accept it, and learned to live with it. Until the rosacea progressed and, as I said, the papules and pustules came. I reached a point where enough was enough - and haven't looked back since! KICKING myself for not having grasped the bull by the horns so to speak, and sorted this problem out sooner, but it was easier to bury my head in the sand and feel sorry for myself

Sulfur and Zinc Oxide I swear by, in terms of having helped reduce the redness of my face Also Canadian Willowherb - and the reason I was so excited about that is because studies have shown a 5% extract of it to be more effective in relieving redness and inflammation that 1% hydrocortisone cream... go figure! Tea tree oil is good for general acne and for the papules and pustules - mine have arrested to the point where I barely get any more, although the ones I did have that cleared up have left small scars I'm afraid. But I can live with that and expect the scars to decrease over time