Spironolactone Reviews

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Prescription summary (320 votes)
How well it works

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4.1/5		 Agreeability

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4.1/5		 Affordability

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4.6/5

Additional ratings
Consistency

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3.4/5 (814 votes)		 Packaging

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3.6/5 (795 votes)		 Fragrance

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4.0/5 (789 votes)

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32 pages

LL, California
May 25th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:It works.
Cons:Frequent urination the first couple of weeks. Takes some time to work. I didn't notice much difference until after a month. I'm scared of the long term side effects and how it might affect pregnancy. Difficult finding a Dr willing to prescribe it
Bottom Line:I've tried everything under the sun for acne and I found out that the best treatment is Dan Kern's regime, Ortho Tri Cyclin, and Spironolactone if you have hormonal acne. The combination of these three medications has made me 95-100% clear. My face used to be 30% covered in acne. Dan Kern's regime does a fantastic job on tiny pimples and decreases the overall number of pimples. However, it couldn't completely get rid of my acne problem. Ortho Tri Cyclin has helped tremendously. My friends commented on how my face was getting nicer and nicer. The combination of these two medications left me with pretty manageable acne, but it was still there and I still had pretty persistent acne on my back. After being prescribed sprironolactone, the acne on my back has completely disappeared and the pimples only appear when I'm stressed or eat badly. I've been prescribed 50mg once a day. Give it some time, it didn't work for me until after a month. Good luck :)
Recommended:Yes
Usage:LL has used this item for a few months.
Price Paid:15.00
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Dawn, Milwaukee
May 23rd, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:Less oil
Cons:Irregular periods
Bottom Line:This medication really does work. I am just curious as to what others use to wash their face while taking this medication?
Recommended:Yes
Usage:Dawn has used this item for a few months.
Price Paid:16.00
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Eve, New York
May 21st, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:Clear Skin!! No More Acne!! No more Oily Skin!! Smooth Skin!!Hairs on body growing slower and less coarser.
Cons:Slight Dizziness and frequent urination for the first week or two.
Bottom Line:I'm a 26 year old female. I've been using Spironolactone 200mg in combination with OrthCyclen(same amount of hormones in every single pill) not OrthoTriCyclen everyday for three weeks. After the first day of using the Spiro I noticed a difference. My skin was less oily. After a week I noticed I had less active pimples and there was a significant reduction in oil. After two and a half weeks no new pimples, skin is super smooth not only on my face but all over body as well. I have clear skin for the first time in like 10 years!! I love this stuff!!
Recommended:Yes
Usage:Eve has used this item for a few weeks.
Price Paid:40.00
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Kim, Oregon
May 21st, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:Clears up acne and keeps it away. I didn't like having cysts removed from my face since they leave scars.
Cons:None
Bottom Line:I've been using it for over a year now and I think I need to up my doasage since I'm starting to break out again. I've been on 25mg 2x day. Based on other people's usage it seems like a low dose.

I had my potassium checked a month then 6 months after starting and not since then. It bothers me not to know.
Recommended:Yes
Price Paid:5.00
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kristina, los angeles
May 19th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:no side effects (that i've noticed), 100% clear skin for the first time in my life. Oil control, no need to blot during the day. Smoother textured skin.
Cons:may have to take this forever or wondering if my body will be able to overcome it.
Bottom Line:I've had acne since i was 13 (I am 30 now) and have tried everything, including accutane which sorta worked but was too severe and such a pain to be on. After going off accutane, the breakouts started again. I wish I was on aldactone sooner! I noticed the results immediately. i also no need for drying products. i will get a little white head or a pimple, but it's not like an out of control pimple situation. It is cheap ($10 a month with my insurance) and I have noticed no side effects. Though I have had more frequent periods (more than once a month a few months back) and as long as that is not life threatening, I would recommend this.
Recommended:Yes
Usage:kristina has used this item for a few months.
Price Paid:10.00
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Alli, Smithton, IL
May 18th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:I love this drug. I used to have continuous breakouts of these small pimples all over my body and spironolactone has changed all of that. Before that, I tried every topical ointment and antibiotic known to man, and nothing ever seemed to help.
Cons:None really. Sometimes I forget to take my pill since I take it twice a day (50 mg morning and night), but thats it.
Bottom Line:Fantastic product. Wish I would've known about it sooner.
Recommended:Yes
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Joy, San Diego
May 17th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:Less oil and clearer skin
Cons:Double periods
Bottom Line:I'm 28 and on my third attempt at spironolactone--I've taken it twice before and then gradually weened off of it when I had success at clearing my facial acne (mainly chin area). In winter every year my face starts breaking out like no tomorrow, and then I start taking spiro and it starts to reduce oil almost immediately, but then takes about 9 weeks to fully improve skin texture and stop the painful cysts. During the initial treatment I am running to the bathroom, feeling dizzy, getting headaches and the acne actually gets worse, but at the 9-week mark it clears up and then I just have to be patient for a few weeks/months while the scarring fades. Meanwhile the side effects have stopped but I'm getting double periods (didn't happen the other times). On the flip side, I'm not cramping, and I'm one of those people who has passed out from menstrual pain at the onset of my period. So all in all, two periods a month is a small price to pay for clear skin and no pain.
Recommended:Yes
Usage:Joy has used this item for a few months.
Price Paid:20.00
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tcm, boston,ma
May 16th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:lost water weight, skin was producing less oil
Cons:Had severe allergic reaction and ended up in the ER.
Bottom Line:My dermatologist recommended this to me last fall after years of failed treatments - retin-a, differen, azelex, mino + tetracycline, clindamicyn, etc., and I hesitated for a bit but decided to try it out this spring after reading the reviews on the message boards.

10 days after starting Spiro, I started developing these red bumps on my arms. The next morning, I woke up itching all over - they had spread and were even on my lips, which were red and misshapen. Even worse, my throat was tight and I had difficulty breathing. I ended up in the ER for six hours and received an IV treatment of benadryl and prednisone. I also had to continue benadryl and prednisone for five days to help clear the reaction out of my system. I'm lucky it wasn't worse.

I think the allergic reaction is rare as I haven't seen anything on these boards, and my dermatologist said that she's only had one patient in 20 years that had a reaction to the Spiro. But I just wanted to post it as an FYI.
Recommended:No
Usage:tcm has used this item for about a week.
Price Paid:10.00
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ana, mexico
May 16th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:much less oily, cysts have almost cleared up completely after 4 weeks
Cons:light headed at the beginning (started with only 25mg), recently tripped and fell, mild twisted ankle, but almost passed out after. dr. said this was due to a very low BP.

Emotional
Bottom Line:seems to be reducing oil significantly. cysts have cleared up...they became resistant to 200mg daily of doxycyline combined with trinessa (generic ortho tricyclen) and topical creams like duac/differin. i am still on the trinessa and have kept up with the topicals.

it is great to be less oily and have clear skin, but
1. I feel like this drug is really no joke...we are playing with a med inicated to lower BP. also from what i have read it can cause serious birth defects, in my opinion just as bad as accutane.
2. So...has anyone been able to stop using sprio after a course of say 5 months and stay clear?

Thanks!
Recommended:Yes
Usage:ana has used this item for about a month.
Price Paid:50.00
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Beth, Alameda, CA
May 14th, 2008
How well it works
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Pros:Cleared up deep, cystic acne within a few days.
Cons:Dry/itchy eyelids, some mild tiredness, foot cramps/charlie horse in the feet initially (got over it after a year or so)
Bottom Line:I had acne in my teens/early 20s that seemed to subside after hitting my mid 20s and taking Ortho-Novum 777. At around 35 (after playing around with my birthcontrol) my acne returned worse than I ever remember it being when I was a teen. I started taking Spironolactone about 2 years ago and I wish I had access to this drug years ago. Definitely worth a try for anyone who has tried everything else with little success.
Recommended:Yes
Price Paid:6.00
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32 pages

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