Tretinoin (Retin-A, Retisol-A) Reviews
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Prescription summary (724 votes) |
How well it works
 
3.2/5 |
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Agreeability
 
2.9/5 |
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Affordability
  
3.5/5 |
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Common brand names:
Retin-A,
Retin-A Micro,
Retisol-A,
Stieva-A,
Avita,
Renova |
Read reviews
71 pages
ak47, Encino, CA
May 24th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | Has potential. When I didn't follow dosage & instead applied a TINY amt 2 my breakouts, they seemed 2 get better-still caused drying out. |
| Cons: | Caused my skin to become excessively dry, flaky, itchy, & painful. Caused a LOT more breakouts & red-splotchy discoloration. My face felt like it was ON FIRE!! |
| Bottom Line: | I used this product as directed for the most part for almost 2 months (minus several days during the times the inflammation & pain was unbearable) and I saw NO improvement-my skin became worse & all I had to show for using this product was more leftover splotches from the flare-ups this medication caused.
Makeup was pretty useless because my face was extremely dry & flaky & seemed to be shedding that my makeup wouldn't stay on (literally). The redness was pretty extreme too.
It would hurt to even go outside or to get any type of sunlight on my face because my face was so irritated.
Beware if you don't have insurance & you want the name brand-it's HELLA expensive! |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | ak47 has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 160.00 |
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chrissy, fl
May 23rd, 2008 |
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| Pros: | nothing |
| Cons: | just like the past people i have more scares now from it it did not help at all i wish i had never used it |
| Bottom Line: | when i would have a break out its like the med. would burn the bumps off leaving scares |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | chrissy has used this item for a few months. |
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lisa, los angeles, ca
May 20th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | dries up acne quickly and make them peel off quicker than it would take normally. |
| Cons: | makes my skin dry and itchy all the times, my skin is always flakey and red, I can't really wear foundation or makeup. |
| Bottom Line: | It doesn't help with all of my acnes, probably reduce my acnes to about less than 50% than what it use to be before, but it's alot to pay for the other side effect, which didn't go away even after 4 months of usage. I'm going stop using this as soon as I start on another method, but I'll still use it in the meantime to reduce the acnes. |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | lisa has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 15.00 |
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2 of 2 visitors found the following comment helpful.
Ms.FutureGorgeousSKin, DC
May 20th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | I can tell its working! My forhead purged and cleared last week and now my cheeks are purging and healing. I'm HAPPY with the Progress :) |
| Cons: | I'll miss getting my eyebrows waxed :( (thins the skin.) |
| Bottom Line: | I have some advice for all of you that go through "Skin Torture" to the point where the peeling, soreness, and sensitivity are unbearable, and embarrassing....Ask you derm for a lesser percent!!! My Tretinoin 0.025% CREAM is very mild, and though it causes peeling, After I lightly exfoiliate with 3 crushed aspirin and apply my purpose moisturizer, my skin looks and feels much smoother. I'm slowlw seeing the improvement and Im sooo happy about it. Remember that tretinoin is NOT antibacterial, so incorporating clindamycin, or benzol peroxide during the day is def. beneficial! I am actually happy to go through this purging faze because I know you must "go through it, to get to it!"..Clear Skin that is. I also ordered Md Forte Glycolic Cleanser III that I can't wait to use along with this product. Tretinoin isn't for everyone but I think it works for 80%. I'll update on June 27th, that's 7 weeks since I started. Im So OPTIMISTIC! |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Ms.FutureGorgeousSKin has used this item for a few weeks. |
| Price Paid: | 5.00 |
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Angelica, California girl, in Germany
May 20th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | cheap if you have insurance, 20 dollars a tube |
| Cons: | made skin oily, greasy, more acne |
| Bottom Line: | i felt slimy wearing this stuff to bed, and dirty. |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | Angelica has used this item for about a year. |
| Price Paid: | 20.00 |
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Sarah, US
May 19th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | Skin has an overall healthier, fresher appearance. It's less oily in the morning. Pores are much more refined. Insurance covers costs. |
| Cons: | I still get breakouts. Especially after I wear makeup. The next morning my face is aweful!!!
Acne tends to turn into deep purple spots that go away after a long time. |
| Bottom Line: | Better Overall condition, No more deep cysts, but lots of nasty whiteheads on my cheeks. I've been using it for about 3 months (Everything i've read says real improvement happens after a year), I'm going to keep using it, but am going to try pairing it w/ an oral antibiotic. |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Sarah has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 90.00 |
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1 of 1 visitors found the following comment helpful.
Anonymous
May 17th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | Really does work with ample time...fights acne, gives smooth skin, and fights aging
Recommed while on treatment: Cetaphil face wash and for ladies wearing make-up - Maybeline Matte Mousse make-up...covers well and goes on peeling/blistering skin. |
| Cons: | You really, really have to have patience! This is not a quick fix. Do not scrub your face with washcloths or any harsh material while on this. Just use hands and Cetaphil moisturizer. |
| Bottom Line: | I used this product when I was a teenager and hated it! I stayed on for maybe two-three weeks and swore it off. Now in my 30's I wanted a great skin...I have had mild to moderate acne starting in my teens and have always used BP at night. I chose to go with Obagi Nu-derm system. The first month was not so bad...second to third was horrible!! There were MANY times I thought about quitting...I felt for sure it is not working and it can never repair damage it is doing. I had a red, peeling face that was so sensitive it hurt to touch...plus I had nasty acne. I made two very bad mistakes initally..do not use BP wash or cream during treatment, and do not put any facial hair cream remover on during treatment. The BP created horrible dry patches and the facial hair remover simply removed hair and skin! Now four months into treatment I cannot believe differnce in my skin...it began healing quickly after third month and just gets better every day...no breakouts and peeling..my skin is so smooth. |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Reviewer has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 60.00 |
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Anonymous
May 15th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | zero |
| Cons: | I tried this for 5 weeks and it was horrible! Small bumps everywhere with cysts all along chin. I didn't want to leave the house. I was also taking antibiotics. I stopped the retin-a and things are so much better. |
| Bottom Line: | Don't try it.....the dark scars that it leaves and the bumps everywhere are horrible! |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | Reviewer has used this item for about a month. |
| Price Paid: | 64.00 |
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Meg, USA
May 14th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | Reduction of acne scarring on some parts of my skin |
| Cons: | Massive breakout, peeling and dryness |
| Bottom Line: | I used to have 1 or 2 pimples at a time, then started using this (.025 strength). At first, there was peeling and redness, but the acne subsided to the point that I went a whole week without even one pimple. Then, after using it for 6 weeks, BOOM! I have the worst break-out of my life. I just counted 39 pimples on my face. This is worse than anything I could have imagined. But, the pimples are all rather superficial, not deep in the skin, and some of them are flat already (2 days post break-out). It looks like they'll heal quickly. Although I am in acne hell right now, it seems like it must be working because this is clearly a "purge" stage. There are a few areas of skin where I don't have acne, and I definitely see a difference in that skin (i.e., clearer and a reduction of discoloration and past scarring). I'm gonna hang in there and hope that this will pass. |
| Usage: | Meg has used this item for a few weeks. |
| Price Paid: | 20.00 |
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Anonymous, Bartlett, IL
May 14th, 2008 |
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| Pros: | My made my skin a little less oilier. |
| Cons: | It made my skin really dry, and a lot of acne still formed. |
| Bottom Line: | It didn't work for me. |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | Reviewer has used this item for a few weeks. |
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71 pages
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