Acne.org Products
Oh, sorry I was getting this from your old post:
Hi,
You can use the Nizoral shampoo a few times a week, up to once a day if it seems to work for you. I use it about every 3rd night.
The oral antifungal will probably take a couple of weeks to start working.
I don't think that Tazorac or other retinoids are helpful with fungal breakouts, due to the fact that the breakouts are not due to clogged pores (which is what tazorac helps prevent). Unlike acne lesions, fungal folliculitis lesions have no "core" in the center. One topical that has helped me is mandelic acid. It has antifungal and exfoliative properties.
So, you can use it everyday? Do you think I can use it 2x a day? I thought what you meant by your post was that it was too harsh or something to use regularly.
I think you can use it once a day (wouldn't use it twice though - probably too drying and too much exposure to the active ingredient). Try using it once a day, but only for a few weeks. Then cut it back. Basically, you want to use it enough to start to clear you, but not enough that you develop a resistance to it right away. Like all antifungals, chances are it will stop working over time - that just seems to be the nature of fungal infections. I think for people who are prone to them, they are probably going to get periodic flare ups. I try to switch products around, use multiple products at once, etc. Other things you might try later are alternating the Nizoral with the ZNP bar (which works, but does tend to be drying) or alternating with the Vivant mandelic cleasner or serum. I highly recommend mandelic for folliculitis. It has worked better and longer than anything I have tried. My folliculitis is 90-95% under control most of the time, which is good enough for me at the moment!
Good luck!!
Thanks for the advice, willow.
I really want to try Mandelic Acid, but it's too much money for me right now. It seems so promising.
The cleanser isn't too bad - $24, I think. I find that it lasts a long time too. The serum is pricey though. I was having a hard time rationalizing spending that much money on a bottle. Since I have to apply it all over my chest and back, I go through a lot of it!
Hey, just wondering if PF will become immune to ZNP, it already has to ketoconazole for me, and ZNP is working well? If it can, I'll have to get some mandelic acid as soon as possible and alternate between which i use.
Thanks
As far as I can tell, PF gets immune to practically everything at some point! I think switching products around really helps me. I stopped ZNP for awhile, and now I am alternating between mandelic and Nizoral shampoo. If the PF doesn't stay under control, I will probably add the ZNP back in for awhile.
How are you doing, BTW?? Any health updates?
O.k thx, I'll be sure to add something else in to treat it then 
And no not yet, I only had the blood taken on Tuesday, and the healthcare over here is a bit slow. I'll be making some phone calls to my doctor next week if I dont hear back from them to find out more.
But to be honest, I'm not that worried about it. I feel 100% healthy, and if there was a major problem, I'd probably feel ill or something right?
Anyway thanks for the info Willow, and you'll be the first to know any updates as soon as I do.
Hi.
Just to let everyone know that I rang the doctors today, and chased up my blood test results.
Turns out everything is fine
But I will NOT be messing with prescription drugs again, no matter how useless my doctor is.
Thanks god
Great to hear things are ok! Also glad to hear that you are stopping the medication. Does your doctor still think the ketoconazole was the reason that your enzyme counts were off?
Hey, just wondering if PF will become immune to ZNP, it already has to ketoconazole for me, and ZNP is working well? If it can, I'll have to get some mandelic acid as soon as possible and alternate between which i use.
Thanks
As far as I can tell, PF gets immune to practically everything at some point! I think switching products around really helps me. I stopped ZNP for awhile, and now I am alternating between mandelic and Nizoral shampoo. If the PF doesn't stay under control, I will probably add the ZNP back in for awhile.
How are you doing, BTW?? Any health updates?
How often do you switch products? every month maybe?
and...
willow, where are getting your Mandelic Acid? Also what brand are you using? I can't find the face reality mandelic serums on amazon :\
Thanks
MoonDoy said:willow569 said:Thomascoote said:Hey, just wondering if PF will become immune to ZNP, it already has to ketoconazole for me, and ZNP is working well? If it can, I'll have to get some mandelic acid as soon as possible and alternate between which i use.Thanks
As far as I can tell, PF gets immune to practically everything at some point! I think switching products around really helps me. I stopped ZNP for awhile, and now I am alternating between mandelic and Nizoral shampoo. If the PF doesn't stay under control, I will probably add the ZNP back in for awhile.
How are you doing, BTW?? Any health updates?
How often do you switch products? every month maybe?
and...
willow, where are getting your Mandelic Acid? Also what brand are you using? I can't find the face reality mandelic serums on amazon :\
Thanks
Hi -
I switch things around every couple of months, or if I start to get a flare-up. I alternate between a few different mandelic products. I use the Vivant mandelic cleanser (you can buy it at betterhealthyskin), and sometimes the Vivant Mandelic Serum. The serum is also available on betterhealthyskin, but you can probably get it cheaper on e-bay. Its pretty pricey. If my skin is getting irritated, I will sometimes use the Vivant 3% mandelic toner instead.
Right now I am using the Face Reality mandelic. Its from my esthetician's own product line, which she only sells to her clients. I think the Vivant worked just as well though. It seems that for me, it doesn't matter which mandelic I use, as long as I use something with mandelic on a regular basis. NuCelle also makes some good mandelic serums (I wouldn't recommend their cleanser though).
Hi everyone.
I had mild acne on my face and shoulders for few years and GP put me on Oxytetracycline. Iv been on it for about 7 months and my face has never been clearer. Result you would think - problem is he never told me Id be covered in folliculitis as a hidden extra!
My chest, shoulders and especially my back are covered in small spots and larger sore lumps. It is so bad, i hate it it is even trying its best to creep up into my jaw line at present.
So I went back to GP and he gave me flucloxacillin for 10 days and then erythromycin for another 10 days. They did absolutley nothing apart from erythromycin totally dried my face out - horrid stuff.
After reading all your posts im convinced I have a fungal folliculitis as a result of being on the oxytet for so long.
Im so concious of how i look with this stuff on my skin. Im kinda hairy too so makes it even worse.
Im going to try Nizoral and see a dermatologist to get this fixed.
Can you get rid of PF for good ? or once youv got it - youv got it ?
Hi everyone.
I had mild acne on my face and shoulders for few years and GP put me on Oxytetracycline. Iv been on it for about 7 months and my face has never been clearer. Result you would think - problem is he never told me Id be covered in folliculitis as a hidden extra!
My chest, shoulders and especially my back are covered in small spots and larger sore lumps. It is so bad, i hate it it is even trying its best to creep up into my jaw line at present.
So I went back to GP and he gave me flucloxacillin for 10 days and then erythromycin for another 10 days. They did absolutley nothing apart from erythromycin totally dried my face out - horrid stuff.
After reading all your posts im convinced I have a fungal folliculitis as a result of being on the oxytet for so long.
Im so concious of how i look with this stuff on my skin. Im kinda hairy too so makes it even worse.
Im going to try Nizoral and see a dermatologist to get this fixed.
Can you get rid of PF for good ? or once youv got it - youv got it ?
Yeah, those damn antibiotics have done this to a lot of people. The doctors really should warn people of this risk when they start on antibiotics for acne.
My understanding is that once you have an ongoing problem with PF, then you'll probably continue to get periods of flareups. I think once the fungus has colonized the pores, its just pretty much there for good. You might see a decrease as you get older and your skin gets less oily - as oily skin is an exacerbating factor for PF. All you can really do is try and control the outbreaks. The Nizoral should help if you do have fungal folliculitis. I have found that alternating between Nizoral and Mandelic acid is effective for me. I'd say my PF stays about 85-95% under control with this regimen.
Hi everyone.
I had mild acne on my face and shoulders for few years and GP put me on Oxytetracycline. Iv been on it for about 7 months and my face has never been clearer. Result you would think - problem is he never told me Id be covered in folliculitis as a hidden extra!
My chest, shoulders and especially my back are covered in small spots and larger sore lumps. It is so bad, i hate it it is even trying its best to creep up into my jaw line at present.
So I went back to GP and he gave me flucloxacillin for 10 days and then erythromycin for another 10 days. They did absolutley nothing apart from erythromycin totally dried my face out - horrid stuff.
After reading all your posts im convinced I have a fungal folliculitis as a result of being on the oxytet for so long.
Im so concious of how i look with this stuff on my skin. Im kinda hairy too so makes it even worse.
Im going to try Nizoral and see a dermatologist to get this fixed.
Can you get rid of PF for good ? or once youv got it - youv got it ?
Yeah, those damn antibiotics have done this to a lot of people. The doctors really should warn people of this risk when they start on antibiotics for acne.
My understanding is that once you have an ongoing problem with PF, then you'll probably continue to get periods of flareups. I think once the fungus has colonized the pores, its just pretty much there for good. You might see a decrease as you get older and your skin gets less oily - as oily skin is an exacerbating factor for PF. All you can really do is try and control the outbreaks. The Nizoral should help if you do have fungal folliculitis. I have found that alternating between Nizoral and Mandelic acid is effective for me. I'd say my PF stays about 85-95% under control with this regimen.
WHAT?!!
These small bumps are permanent?!
FUCCK I hate my doctor, I should of seen a derm.
Hi everyone.
I had mild acne on my face and shoulders for few years and GP put me on Oxytetracycline. Iv been on it for about 7 months and my face has never been clearer. Result you would think - problem is he never told me Id be covered in folliculitis as a hidden extra!
My chest, shoulders and especially my back are covered in small spots and larger sore lumps. It is so bad, i hate it it is even trying its best to creep up into my jaw line at present.
So I went back to GP and he gave me flucloxacillin for 10 days and then erythromycin for another 10 days. They did absolutley nothing apart from erythromycin totally dried my face out - horrid stuff.
After reading all your posts im convinced I have a fungal folliculitis as a result of being on the oxytet for so long.
Im so concious of how i look with this stuff on my skin. Im kinda hairy too so makes it even worse.
Im going to try Nizoral and see a dermatologist to get this fixed.
Can you get rid of PF for good ? or once youv got it - youv got it ?
Yeah, those damn antibiotics have done this to a lot of people. The doctors really should warn people of this risk when they start on antibiotics for acne.
My understanding is that once you have an ongoing problem with PF, then you'll probably continue to get periods of flareups. I think once the fungus has colonized the pores, its just pretty much there for good. You might see a decrease as you get older and your skin gets less oily - as oily skin is an exacerbating factor for PF. All you can really do is try and control the outbreaks. The Nizoral should help if you do have fungal folliculitis. I have found that alternating between Nizoral and Mandelic acid is effective for me. I'd say my PF stays about 85-95% under control with this regimen.
WHAT?!!
These small bumps are permanent?!
FUCCK I hate my doctor, I should of seen a derm.
Eh, a derm might not have done much better. Mine prescibed antibiotics, which is part of the reason I have PF today. Not all derms diagnosis PF right away either. They continue to prescribe acne topicals, which often don't help and sometimes make things worse.
The bumps themselves may not be permanent exactly - the individual bumps may come and go, but the problem itself is somewhat permanent (or at least long lived). I have heard that accutane is one of the treatments that offers a more permanent solution to the problem - I'm not willing to take something that strong though.
Hi everyone.
I had mild acne on my face and shoulders for few years and GP put me on Oxytetracycline. Iv been on it for about 7 months and my face has never been clearer. Result you would think - problem is he never told me Id be covered in folliculitis as a hidden extra!
My chest, shoulders and especially my back are covered in small spots and larger sore lumps. It is so bad, i hate it it is even trying its best to creep up into my jaw line at present.
So I went back to GP and he gave me flucloxacillin for 10 days and then erythromycin for another 10 days. They did absolutley nothing apart from erythromycin totally dried my face out - horrid stuff.
After reading all your posts im convinced I have a fungal folliculitis as a result of being on the oxytet for so long.
Im so concious of how i look with this stuff on my skin. Im kinda hairy too so makes it even worse.
Im going to try Nizoral and see a dermatologist to get this fixed.
Can you get rid of PF for good ? or once youv got it - youv got it ?
Yeah, those damn antibiotics have done this to a lot of people. The doctors really should warn people of this risk when they start on antibiotics for acne.
My understanding is that once you have an ongoing problem with PF, then you'll probably continue to get periods of flareups. I think once the fungus has colonized the pores, its just pretty much there for good. You might see a decrease as you get older and your skin gets less oily - as oily skin is an exacerbating factor for PF. All you can really do is try and control the outbreaks. The Nizoral should help if you do have fungal folliculitis. I have found that alternating between Nizoral and Mandelic acid is effective for me. I'd say my PF stays about 85-95% under control with this regimen.
WHAT?!!
These small bumps are permanent?!
FUCCK I hate my doctor, I should of seen a derm.
Eh, a derm might not have done much better. Mine prescibed antibiotics, which is part of the reason I have PF today. Not all derms diagnosis PF right away either. They continue to prescribe acne topicals, which often don't help and sometimes make things worse.
The bumps themselves may not be permanent exactly - the individual bumps may come and go, but the problem itself is somewhat permanent (or at least long lived). I have heard that accutane is one of the treatments that offers a more permanent solution to the problem - I'm not willing to take something that strong though.
I think I might of been better off with a derm. My general doctor said "hhmm acne" then put me on minocycline and differin for 2 years. I kept going back showing him the bumps, but he says "it's nothing, its part of growing up you'll grow out of it".
I'm having good success controlling PF with low-dose Accutane (started at 10 mg/day, now reduced to 30 mg/week) and mandelic acid (I use the Vivant cleanser and the 9% toner, and spot-treat with the 15% serum as needed).
Itchy bumps do still pop up periodically ..... but a dose of mandelic takes them down again, usually within a few hours.
I am wondering if there might be a laser treatment that would kill this stuff off permanently? Has anyone heard of such a thing?
I'm having good success controlling PF with low-dose Accutane (started at 10 mg/day, now reduced to 30 mg/week) and mandelic acid (I use the Vivant cleanser and the 9% toner, and spot-treat with the 15% serum as needed).
Itchy bumps do still pop up periodically ..... but a dose of mandelic takes them down again, usually within a few hours.
I am wondering if there might be a laser treatment that would kill this stuff off permanently? Has anyone heard of such a thing?
Lion Queen and Willow,
I am a pretty new member, but have been on this site for weeks now - just absorbing all this info and both of you have some great things to share so thanks!
I am 37 and suffered with mild to mod acne since early 20's. I was thinking that I had folliculitis down on the right side of my chin since it sounded similiar to what you have described and others out there as well.
I just went to the dr and the told me I have peri-oral dermatitis and I am going to be on Metrogel and Erythromycin for 30 days to start as he says it takes for ever to go away. I don't see much on this - do you know anything about it? I am still thinking I have a fungal problelm as I was on Doxycycline and Bactroban topical a month back for what they thought was impetigo (same area on face). Will the Mandelic Acid help me somehow- I know that you mentioned before LQ , that it is an antifungal, if so which Vivant are you using, you had mentioned before there is one for oily skin I think? Also, I was really looking into Green Cream and I am wondering if I have to hold off on that...God, can't I just worry about wrinkles now instead of dealing with this other stuff too?
I am currently doing the regimen with Purpose Cleanser, Proactiv BP, spot treat with Murad Salicylic Acid, and Jojoba Oil and Cetaphil Cream mixed together for a moisturizer.
Thanks again for all your help you provide.
^^^ I have to run, so I will have to look at your post in depth later. One quick question, though: Have you tried changing your toothpaste? Some people have ugly reactions in the chin and mouth area to some ingredient (can't remember what) that's in most toothpastes. Switching to an all-natural brand has helped them.
^^^ I have to run, so I will have to look at your post in depth later. One quick question, though: Have you tried changing your toothpaste? Some people have ugly reactions in the chin and mouth area to some ingredient (can't remember what) that's in most toothpastes. Switching to an all-natural brand has helped them.
I noticed that when I googled the diagnosis. I will give it a shot.
Thanks for your help!
DW
^^^ I have to run, so I will have to look at your post in depth later. One quick question, though: Have you tried changing your toothpaste? Some people have ugly reactions in the chin and mouth area to some ingredient (can't remember what) that's in most toothpastes. Switching to an all-natural brand has helped them.
Sodium Laurylth Sulfate? Good idea! I recommend to a lot of people for them to change their toothpaste too lol
^^^ I have to run, so I will have to look at your post in depth later. One quick question, though: Have you tried changing your toothpaste? Some people have ugly reactions in the chin and mouth area to some ingredient (can't remember what) that's in most toothpastes. Switching to an all-natural brand has helped them.
Sodium Laurylth Sulfate? Good idea! I recommend to a lot of people for them to change their toothpaste too lol
Thanks Molly,
I see you alot out here too... I wish I found this place sooner...