34 replies to this topic

[DancingStar]

Which birth control pill seems to work the most for acne only (I am not sexually active)?

[kate]

dianette

[vanessa]

diane-35 kept me clear for years. (I'm not sure if dianette is the same thing in the U.S.)

[Medellia]

Hi - Diane-35 has a 4 times higher than average (compared to other birth control pills) risk of blood clots, about 1 in 1000. Blood clots can lead to stroke and even death. You should seriously consider whether you are willing to take this risk before you take this drug. Dianette is the UK version (Diane-35 is available in Canada) - the same drug. A recent large study came out comparing Diane to other BCPs and it definitely has an elevated risk. It may be worth it to you if your acne is moderate - severe, personally I found it made a huge difference in my acne, but I don't think it's worth the risk anymore, and I'm going to switch to Tri-cyclen which is also good.
Here is a link to the Health Canada advisory:

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hpb dgps/therapeut/zfiles/english/advisory/tpd/diane-35_e.html

I'm not trying to knock it if you want to try it, but most people don't know about this risk. Just a caveat.

[vanessa]

This is a really good point Medellia. My doctor talked to me about this when the study came out (I was still on Diane-35 at the time) & we decided the risks were worth it - if you think about it, 160 in 100,000 (1 in 625, taking the numbers cited in the studies you quoted) is actually not that high. After all, pregnancy also brings a 60 in 100,000 chance of VTE, but we don't decide not to have kids based on that!

All this is not to say that it's not a risk, but as humans we tend to overestimate this kind of risk when we make decisions. It's the same sort of thing as everyone freaking out about West Nile virus, shark attacks, blood clots on planes etc. One thing that is REALLY important though is that you absolutely should not smoke when on this pill (or any other pill for that matter).

Anyway, thanks Medellia for posting this, I think it's great that there are people on this board who are bringing this sort of thing to people's attention. And people should definitely try to bring their acne under control in less risky ways before moving on to Diane-35, Accutane etc.

[Ladyxstacy]

Ortho tri-cyclen has been proven to reduce mild to moderate acne.
Check out their website:
http://www.orthotri-cyclen.com/

I've been on it for almost 3 years. I only went on it because I was starting accutane so I can't say for sure if it helped with my skin, all I know it that it's supposed to.

[Lexie]

Yasmin works for me. I still get one or two breakouts during TTOM :? I wish the marks would fade :?

[Psychocandy]

Yasmin made me depressed and did absolutely nothing for my skin.

[by]

I have ben on Diane 35 for 6 years and it worked miracle after years of frustration over other medications. But the thing is I think I am dependent on it now. I tried to stop a few times, it came back worse.

Are there others who experience the same problem? Are we supposed to be on this till our menopause? What if we want to get pregnant? I feel I've signed my life out to this pill. Is there anyway out of this?

[shatangi]

The research I did was as follows...you need to look for a pill with moderate to low progestin & estrogen, with LOW androgen. If your acne is hormonal, this is what's making everything stick and gunk up. I've tried Ortho tri cyclen for over 6 months and it did nothing. Otho Novum 7/7/7 actually helped, I know thid now bcs I've come off it 2 months ago {erroneously thinking i needed a "break"} and my skin has erupted like Krakatoa. Online, the hype is over Diane-35/Dianette and Yasmin, both of which contain spironolactone {a duiretic if you can believe it!} which suppresses androgenic activity. However, Diane-35 isn't avail. in the US and has too much bad press over blood clots. The 4th generation progestins {norgestimate & desogestrel} have been noted to help with acne, having no androgenic activity rather supressing it. Orthocept, Desogen, and Ortho cyclen, and Ortho tricyclen contain this progestin. What really blows about this...like many things are different pill chemistry to different body chemistry, nothings gonna work for everyone. I've recently chosen to get on Otho cyclen. I liked the Ortho Novum and it's a monophasic which I require due to Bipolar Disorder. Triphasic birth control can "tip" the scales emotionally if you are bipolar, causing mania or depression. Ortho cyclen also has 4th generational progestin. I'll let y'all know how it works out. My best research was at fpnotebook.com --family phys.notebook. They go thru all the pills on the market, break down the chemistry and make suggestions for adverse reactions.

[shanharbi71]

Hello all - there's a good website I found some time ago called dermadoctor.com and she has many helpful articles on it. One is entitled "Acne and Hormones" and discusses the different oral contraceptives that help acne at length. I think you're right - everybody's chemistry is different and first what needs to be determined is if your acne is caused by a hormone imbalance. I have done lots of research and have discovered that a blood test to check hormone levels is rather inadequate. There is a better way; it's called saliva testing and you can find out more about it online. It's more precise and would be better at diagnosing. I'm 31 and, like several of you have mentioned, had beautiful skin all my life, used to run track in full makeup with nary a pimple, until I was about 20 - then my skin started to progressively break out more and now I am almost 32 years old and am having to deal with this stuff! My dermatologist feels that stress plays a large role in why adult acne is becoming more and more common. People are always under the gun; maybe if we learned to relax a little more and take it easy our skin would calm down! I'm on Retin-A Micro and antibiotics so we'll see how this works! :roll:

[Violeta]

I was on Diane but changed to OTC because of the risks.

[SpongeBob]

for those of you on yasmin, did u notice great weight gain????

[SpongeBob]

for those of you on yasmin, did u notice great weight gain????

[cookie77]

I have tried ortho tri cylin with hopes of it being a miracle for acne--and it did not make it better or worse-but when I stopped it ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE--i got ACNE--which I had never had severely before. Thankfully ive now, a year later, balanced things out with spironolactone--which is GREAT. Ladies with hormonal acne--spironolactone is much better, and you are not pumping your body full of hormones everyday--gettin off of bcp is a horrible experience (and you know you are not gonna be on them forever!)

[Psychocandy]

for those of you on yasmin, did u notice great weight gain????

No...only that I was feeling depressed. How much weight did you gain if you dont mind me asking :oops:

[shanharbi71]

Hmmm, that's strange that you should inquire about weight gain on Yasmin -- I've heard that it is one of those few BCPs that actually doesn't cause weight gain and keeps you from retaining as much water as the others!

Regarding the spironolactone - have you noticed it causing irregular periods at all? I have read that could be a side effect of it. God knows I don't want that!

Thanks

[emilynil466]

[SpongeBob]

I am 5'8 and weighed 110, now i am 122 so there u go

[bazookajoe]

Hi guys-

I was put on ortho tri-cyclen Lo to help with pre-menstrual breakouts and it worked pretty well along with antibiotics, until I went off the pill, thinking oh, my face is clear, i don't need to take this pill anymore. Three months later after the pill was out of my system, I broke out again bad. I went back on it, along with antibiotics, and here I am a year later and my face still gets breakouts before my period. The ortho Lo is better than nothing, but it isn't what I need.

So, i went to the gyny, and she prescribed Desogen for me (i got the generic Apri) and I am hoping this will help. I'll keep you all updated (if anyone cares). Please pray for me