Tretinoin (Retin-A, Retisol-A) Reviews
Reviews home, or write a review for this item.
Prescription summary (741 votes) |
How well it works
 
3.2/5 |
|
Agreeability
 
2.9/5 |
|
Affordability
  
3.5/5 |
|
|
Common brand names:
Retin-A,
Retin-A Micro,
Retisol-A,
Stieva-A,
Avita,
Renova |
Read reviews
72 pages
Anonymous, USA
Apr 30th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Acne is seriously clearing up! Hurray! |
| Cons: | Peeling, but nothing too bad. |
| Bottom Line: | So, my doctor prescribed it and I went on here, read the reviews and freaked out thinking that I would go through a horrible breakout... I'm about three weeks into it now and, well... nothing except a bit of peeling around the areas I apply it but nothing too bad. I wasn't going to post a review until I'd tried it out for a few months, but I thought I'd let people with mild acne know that the breakout depends on how bad your acne is. I had one or two pimples but they went away quickly. |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Reviewer has used this item for about a month. |
|
william, san francisco
Apr 30th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | works fast
minimizes the size of bumps
makes my white heads smaller |
| Cons: | i have to use a whole lot of moisturizer to keep my face moist and not dry |
| Bottom Line: | i have had this for about two weeks and i hadnt experienced the breakout yet but my skin has gotten better and there is barely any acne on my face. mostly scars now. i got it prescribed to me during a check up from my doctor. its way better than proactiv FOR SURE and i also use cetaphil in the morning
my dad paid 10 dollars for two tubes with insurance |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | william has used this item for a few weeks. |
| Price Paid: | 10.00 |
|
grrrrtoacne, US
Apr 29th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Acne has been reduced, but not fully. I used to have bad acne, and now it's mild, but every once in a while there'll be a big pimple. |
| Cons: | flaky, dry skin, burning, redness |
| Bottom Line: | Although some acne has disappeared, not enough has gone and the side effects make it not worth it. My skin is dry in some spots, oily in others, and red and shiny everywhere. Moisturizer burns, and the flaking is embarrasing. |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | grrrrtoacne has used this item for about a month. |
|
Anonymous, virginia
Apr 26th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Cons: | help! no improvement yet! |
| Bottom Line: | I've tried using Retin A several times in the past and only make it to about 5 weeks because it seems like the red marks only get redder and brighter and don't seem to ever want to go away. I don't break out just can't get rid of the red. It's been 5 years since I tried it and my Dr. convinced me to try again. Does anyone else have this problem? I'm on week 4 and again getting frustrated but read other reviews that make me want to wait it out. I'm wondering if I'm allergic though? |
| Usage: | Reviewer has used this item for about a month. |
| Price Paid: | 10.00 |
|
Robin, Baltimore, MD
Apr 23rd, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | I don't seem to get the huge annoying pimples anymore. Just little ones that if LEFT ALONE will go away in a day or so. |
| Cons: | When I first started I got ton and I mean tons of whiteheads that seem to have come out of nowhere. The skin around my mouth is ALWAYS dry, red and flaky. |
| Bottom Line: | After approx. 2 months of use I am realizing that this is just not the product for me. Unfortunatly none of the treatments my Dr. has worked for me. I am allergic to just about every antibiotic out there and already have depression and can't take the accutane. I wonder what next? If anybody has any suggestions... |
| Recommended: | No |
| Usage: | Robin has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 20.00 |
|
Rania, Philadelphia
Apr 23rd, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Skin feels smooth and soft after initial peeling. Noticable reduction in spots and pimples. |
| Cons: | Dry, itchy, flakey, burning sking. For the first week, the meds burned when applying moisterizer. |
| Bottom Line: | My mom recommended I use retin-A after it cleared her acne over 30 years ago. She has beautiful skin since. I have been battling acne for the past 12 years and this is the second product that have shown some results. The first product where I found results was created by a dermo that passed away. He was fantastic and a leader in the dermo field with over 60 years in practice.
Once the initial peeling subsides and skin gets adjusted to the meds the results are fantastic. I just gently exfoliated the dry skin. The skin that is left is feeling baby smooth and clear. I use duac in the am and retin-a in the pm. I still get a few pimples however, they dissapear by the next morning without scaring or pain. I hope these results continue! |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Rania has used this item for a few weeks. |
| Price Paid: | 35.00 |
|
J, New York, NY
Apr 23rd, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Fades scars, new acne heals quickly, makes skin more radiant since you are shedding skin at a more rapid pace than usual - no need to exfoliate |
| Cons: | Takes a long time to work. The process of purging your skin can be really discouraging. |
| Bottom Line: | I am using Retin A in combination with Minocycline and Duac for about 3 months now. The first 2 months were pretty horrible. Tons of new breakouts, scars, and dry skin which was impossible to cover up with makeup so I had to go out just like that. Was ready to give up on it and yell at my doctor but about 2 weeks ago, I stopped having breakouts all together. Maybe it was being on vacation, being in the sun and sweating a lot that helped but since then, I have been clear. Scars are fading and the cystic acne I had has slowly moved to the surface so no more bumps when I touch my face. It took about 10-11 weeks for this to really show results, but now that it finally has, I'm really happy. Just stick with it! |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | J has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 15.00 |
|
mike, NY
Apr 22nd, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | it works, and i can tell you that it will work for you 100%, but it takes TIME! |
| Cons: | takes a very long time. peels and burns |
| Bottom Line: | its the best thing ive ever tried. i've had bad skin since the 6th grade. i'm now a junior and this is the only thing that has ever cleared my face. better yet, its getting rid of my acne scars to!
listen, this thing takes time. it gets worse before it gets better, but with the way it works its pratically guarenteed to work. it took me about 3 months for the acne, but i have SEVERE pimples.
just try it. i promise you will like it. and it makes your skin so refreshed.
i'm so glad my docter perscribed me this stuff.
(btw i use the generic brand, trentinoin gel .025% works just the same as retin a.) |
| Usage: | mike has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 10.00 |
|
Melinda, Sydney, Aust
Apr 20th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Evens out skin tone, makes skin look youthful and radiant, seems to turn over pimples more quickly when they come up |
| Cons: | Makes skin sensitive, if skin is oily it becomes both dry/flaky and oily/shiny at the same time which is unpleasant, takes a long time and it's hard to tell if it's working due to waves of breakouts |
| Bottom Line: | I've been using it for seven weeks and initially saw an improvement, followed by the expected breakout. My skin has become even toned and radiant though it doesn't help the oily skin I have naturally and I do flake at the same time, which makes wearing makeup a disaster. Skin cleared up again however after the forth week it just keeps breaking out with each day huge blind pimples surfacing. I assume this is meant to happen though it is very disheartening in the morning to discover yet more pimples. I'm going to stick with it as instructed since I am allergic to oral medications and reviews here indicate for some people it can take months. Also have come of the bcp so irregular/regualting hormones may be hindering the process. Works much better than duac which just makes me breakout horribly. |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | Melinda has used this item for a few months. |
| Price Paid: | 50.00 |
|
great for wrinkles, not acne, San Diego
Apr 19th, 2008 |
|
How well it works
|
|
Agreeability
|
|
Affordability
|
|
|
| Pros: | Well, my skin has never looked so young. I was starting to worry about wrinkles and the mild acne I've had my entire life seemed to be gettin worse. Tretinoin has completely erased the fine lines I had in a matter of six weeks, I kid you not. |
| Cons: | Unfortunately, it seems to have made my acne worse, not better. I have never before in my life had acne this bad and this is six weeks after I started using it. To be fair, I recently went off the pill which might be an aggravating factor. |
| Bottom Line: | I'll keep using it even if it doesn't clear up my (mild) acne - the anti-aging benefits are unbelievable! I'll find something else to clear up my acne if this doesn't start working for that after a few weeks. |
| Recommended: | Yes |
| Usage: | great for wrinkles, not acne has used this item for a few weeks. |
| Price Paid: | 15.00 |
|
72 pages
Write a review
If you have a question about "Tretinoin (Retin-A, Retisol-A)", please visit our message boards. If you have tried "Tretinoin (Retin-A, Retisol-A)" and wish to review it, please do so below.
Rate from 1 (worst) to 5 (best) in the colored boxes below. Hover your mouse over each box for details. You may also optionally fill in your name, location, and additional fields below. Please check for accuracy before submitting your rating.
We welcome your
feedback for the reviews page.
Home
