thank you very much for your response.

my skin has gotten much worse and now i'm really seriously considering low dose accutane. i'm having an appointment with my derm next week and i'll talk to her about it.

my friend was on a low dose (although higher than yours, it was 15 mg a day or something like that) for about a year and apart from face and lips dryness she also experienced very uncomfortable vaginal dryness. that was the main reason why she decided to stop taking accutane even though the results were great. i know it's kind of an intimate question and i'm sorry for that but have you experienced anything like that?

xx

Agata.

Hi! I did not experience anything like that. Although, her being on 15 mg a day meant her dose was about 5 times higher than mine. Maybe on a lower dose she could still have clearance without that side effect?

Dana

Hi all. I'm 3 weeks in to my low dose accutane course. 10mg every second day with the end goal being 10 mg every 3rd or 4th day for maintenance. I'm in Australia and my derm has told me I'll likely be on it for life. I've had 5 courses of full on dose accutane in the past and my skin was brilliant whilst on the drug and for 6-12 months after I finished. Eventually though I always ended back at square one. So anyway ,for me this low dose regime is a very concept and it will be interesting to see how it goes. Only side effect so far is slightly dry lips but they're not even all that bad. I am going through an initial breakout at the moment which is pretty bad but hey it's nothing I'm not already used to having suffered with acne for 20 years or so.

Cheers all, Bek

So just for a bit of an update for anyone doing low dose but not finding much information :

Started 6th June 2015. Have take 100mg in total up to this point (10mg every 2nd day ... with a couple of extra tablets taken sporadically to see if I couldn't kick things up a notch). I had initial breakout/purge over the last week but just with the last 2 doses I have felt the effects really kicking in. Flaky, itchy skin. Eyes feeling a little dry. Lips a little dry. Oil drying up in hair/scalp. Existing pimples drying out really fast. Skin already much smoother and brighter despite the low dose. I had my doubts but all appears to be working without the horrendous side effects of a 'full on' dose. A couple of little pimples cropping up in my usual problem problem areas but they never become horribly inflamed and are hardly noticeable after 1 day.

:rolleyes:

hey all .. little update ... nearly one month in doing 10mg every second day. Skin has been pretty bad these last 5 days but I have been battling a flu virus so that could partly be to blame I guess. Texture of skin is rough and scaly with heaps of blackheads and white heads coming to the surface .. I guess the purge/initial outbreak is still ongoing. At least they all dry up pretty quickly and heal super fast I guess. Eyes and lips a little dry but ok. Im not constantly applying balm to lips or drops to my eyes like I used to when I took the much higher dosage years ago. Scalp is completely oil free too so no more washing my hair every day (YAY !) . Have been pretty tired of late but again that could be more to do with the virus I have as opposed to the roaccutane. No sore joints/muscles (except those I attribute to old age). Derm said it could be 3-5 months before I notice a real difference in my skin although I hope this horrible purge stage is over soon as my skin feels yuck. That's it for now. Will post in another week and hopefully these posts will help anyone else starting low dose roaccutane.

:rolleyes:

hi again .. another update Well I had the week from hell with being very ill with a virus and suffering the dreaded purge/IB from the roacc. Up to now I have had 170mg total roacc / 10mg every second day (start date 6th june 2015) . Went to normal docs and grabbed some antibiotics , mainly to calm my skin down as it hasn't been that bad for a very long time. Id forgotten how nasty the purge can be. The pimples are different. Large, red, inflamed, very sore to touch. My whole face hurt. Be it a combination of my flu subsiding and/or the antibiotics and things have finally calmed down. Within 2 days the pimples I had (mainly nasal fold/mouth/cheek/chin area) have nearly completely gone and I can already feel and see the difference roacc makes to my skin. I run my hands over my face and can no longer feel the lumps and bumps ready to come to a head at any minute. My skin was very congested ... all over and all the time. So often I wouldn't have a lot of active red angry pus spots (although I did get these too) but my main issue has always been just the bumps and lumps under the surface as well as nose and forehead blackheads. I can happily say even on this miniscule total amount of roacc that it still works just as effectively as blasting your system with the massive dose. It still surprises me how amazing this drug is. So one month in and hopefully the purge is behind me and I can focus on my skin improving more and more each day. I have been drinking a lot of water and have had very few side effects. Slightly dry eyes s but even this is not really an issue and I don't need eyedrops at all. Same with the lip balm for dry lips. I put some on every now and then but not constantly. Suffice to say at this stage I am blown away by how good low dose roacc is and why do they still prescribe the mega dose at all ??? Hope these posts help. Ill report back in a couple of weeks

Hi all . Another update. Now at 280mg total (start date 6th June / 10mg every second day) at about the 6 week mark. My skin is fantastic. I'm not sure how much further improvement there will be but I'd be happy if it stayed like this forever. Skin is clear and bright, pores tighter. Makeup sits beautifully on my face now and lasts all day ! Its hard to believe actually . The purge sucked and yes I definitely still got it even on the low dose but if you can just past that bad patch skin improves dramatically after that. Drinking lots of water to combat dryness, dehydration, headaches etc... and I do notice some of those symptoms creeping in if my fluid intake has not been great for the day. That's about it really. Not much else to report. Only wish I'd done this years ago to save myself from several big scars.

Hello everyone,

my oily skin just relapsed again after my second accutane course. I am so fed up with this! I came across this topic and decided to go on a low dose of accutane indefinitely, too!

I will only stop if I absolutely have to, because of bloodwork or other severe side effects like hair loss, etc. For the beginning I will have my blood checked every 3 months and if all goes well, I will reduce it to every 6 months. I'd rather die a few years sooner, but was actually able to enjoy and live those years than live in misery and loneliness for the rest of my life.

@danadanadana: Do you still have the link for the dermatologist, who says he's taking it indefinitely? I tried to find him on realself, but I couldn't.

@matt44bek: How's it going with your course?

Did you lose any hair during the 3 years?

Hi @Vanessa2002. Thought id check in .. its been a while since my last update. All is well. Off to see my derm this Tuesday so am thinking of questions I need to ask her re: this long term thing but honestly its been the easiest medication ive ever taken. I haven't noticed any real side effects to speak of.. slightly dry eyes but it's not that bad. After my horrible purge my skin looked amazing (at around the 4 week mark) but since then ive been fighting a few outbreaks (but my husband has been quite unwell so I put it down to stress). If I had to put a figure on it I'd say my skin is 95% improved on what it was before and really the little pimples that are appearing every now and then disappear really quickly so I don't fuss over them too much. My skin has been feeling a little more oily of late and I do often wonder if my skin starts to tolerate this drug a little too well and it starts to lose its effectiveness... I don't know. It could be my imagination but its something i'm going to bring up with my dermatologist anyway. I'm also going to find out how often blood tests are required although I think my derm mentioned we'd be doing them every 6 months.. which is ok I guess although I have hide and seek veins and blood tests are so NOT enjoyable !!!!

Oh and @HollyS90 I would say I have had some very slight hair loss. But nothing I'm too worried about. I do know that now that the oil is under control that I only need to wash my hair a couple of times a week as opposed to every night so that's a good thing

CHeers all

Well here's my last update guys as I'm off the Roacc now. How things can change in a very small amount of time. Basically I started getting burning hot flushes with each dose of medication. I was on 10mg every other day. I did an experiment to see if it was indeed the Accutane and it def was. With each bout of flushing , the following day I would have clusters of small pustules in the spots of my face that got particularly hot when I had the flush (usually top of cheekbones, side of cheeks). Some were little yellow pustules , others were like small hive, rash bites (more like mini blisters) filled with clear fluid. Not good. It was a vicious cycle really. I cannot tell you why it began to happen ... over my course I didn't even manage to complete a full 60 tablet dose x 10mg box so even though I was very very low dose (I had taken about 560mg over approx. 3 months) it still had this reaction for me. Now, although not entirely sure, I believe I have a mild case of rosacea (papules/pustules) , mild flushing and visible capillaries on cheeks etc... I can't quite believe it to be honest. I have read so much literature and accuatne accounts over the years and I have heard of many Accutane experiences that resulted in Rosacea. Whether that tendency to develop Rosacea is there prior to commencing the course of treatment and the medicine just exacerbates an already existing condition .. well whos to say ??? and who's to know ??? Certainly not the dermatologists it seems. Mine has just prescribed my Rozex/ Roscaea cream (sent in the mail without even seeing my skin) so you do the math... I guess my update to you all and my advice would be this ... be careful ... listen to your body and what its telling you. I know this medicine can be a both a blessing and a curse. I wish nothing more than that this would have worked for me long term. Such an easy solution to pop a tablet every know and then to keep skin in check. But in a way I feel like i've dodged a bullet .... This happened to me on a small small dose coursing through my system and I stopped it very quickly when I knew something was wrong. Hopefully in time my skin will sort out this new issue but who knows what would have happened if i'd just ignored my syptoms and just kept taking the medication.... who knows .... good luck to you all .

Cheers, Bek

Well here's my last update guys as I'm off the Roacc now. How things can change in a very small amount of time. Basically I started getting burning hot flushes with each dose of medication. I was on 10mg every other day. I did an experiment to see if it was indeed the Accutane and it def was. With each bout of flushing , the following day I would have clusters of small pustules in the spots of my face that got particularly hot when I had the flush (usually top of cheekbones, side of cheeks). Some were little yellow pustules , others were like small hive, rash bites (more like mini blisters) filled with clear fluid. Not good. It was a vicious cycle really. I cannot tell you why it began to happen ... over my course I didn't even manage to complete a full 60 tablet dose x 10mg box so even though I was very very low dose (I had taken about 560mg over approx. 3 months) it still had this reaction for me. Now, although not entirely sure, I believe I have a mild case of rosacea (papules/pustules) , mild flushing and visible capillaries on cheeks etc... I can't quite believe it to be honest. I have read so much literature and accuatne accounts over the years and I have heard of many Accutane experiences that resulted in Rosacea. Whether that tendency to develop Rosacea is there prior to commencing the course of treatment and the medicine just exacerbates an already existing condition .. well whos to say ??? and who's to know ??? Certainly not the dermatologists it seems. Mine has just prescribed my Rozex/ Roscaea cream (sent in the mail without even seeing my skin) so you do the math... I guess my update to you all and my advice would be this ... be careful ... listen to your body and what its telling you. I know this medicine can be a both a blessing and a curse. I wish nothing more than that this would have worked for me long term. Such an easy solution to pop a tablet every know and then to keep skin in check. But in a way I feel like i've dodged a bullet .... This happened to me on a small small dose coursing through my system and I stopped it very quickly when I knew something was wrong. Hopefully in time my skin will sort out this new issue but who knows what would have happened if i'd just ignored my syptoms and just kept taking the medication.... who knows .... good luck to you all .

Cheers, Bek

omg now i'm scared that my long-term treatment will also result in something like this. i'm on 5 mg every other day and in total i have taken around 300 mg over 3 months. everything is perfectly fine and my body has no weird reactions but you have really frightened me

just another quick update .. turns out my afternoon flushing/red face was a phototoxic reaction that gradually built up during the day with just normal UV/sun exposure (I wear SPF 30+ everyday) and would always result in a burning red face by mid-late afternoon. It's taken me a while to work it out but I finally got there. It took 17 days after my last Roacc tablet for the flushing/photosensitivity to stop and after that I had 3 really great skin weeks. I then started Duac cream (another acne medication that carries the photosensitivity warning labels) to try and maintain my current state of decent skin and after just over a week the flushing returned !! I almost could not believe it was happening all over again but then I started to put 2+2 together and I'm sure this is what my problem is. So it turns out most/all acne medications will be no good for me as nearly all of them can cause light/photosensitivity. At least I now know what the heck is going on and hopefully this might help others who think/(or may be diagnosed) that their flushing etc .. is Rosacea when it actually might be just a reaction to their acne medication (of which nearly all cause photosensitivity !!!!). Oh and also my redness was always worse on my right cheek/right side of face. As I spend a lot of time driving my car (kids to and from various activities/school) it is my right side that cops most sunlight etc.... My left side would occasionally flare up but it was never as red and burning as my right. And also the flushing is/was def causing further damage/distress to my skin ... more pimples and general irritation. My left side is clear as a bell. I didn't apply duac last night and already today I can feel a difference. I still have some warmth and redness to my face but not as bad as the last couple of days when I looked quite sunburnt and felt burning hot ! I guess it'll take a few more days for the drug to clear out of my system and I expect my face will return back to normal in a few days to a week. I'm not sure where this leaves me in terms of acne treatment..... I'm guessing I could be out of options for the moment. But i'll deal with it in all honesty... the flushing and burning and consequent damage is worse than the acne anyway

On Ž10Ž/Ž25Ž/Ž2015Ž Ž2Ž:Ž37Ž:Ž31Ž, matt44bek said:

 

just another quick update .. turns out my afternoon flushing/red face was a phototoxic reaction that gradually built up during the day with just normal UV/sun exposure (I wear SPF 30+ everyday) and would always result in a burning red face by mid-late afternoon. It's taken me a while to work it out but I finally got there. It took 17 days after my last Roacc tablet for the flushing/photosensitivity to stop and after that I had 3 really great skin weeks. I then started Duac cream (another acne medication that carries the photosensitivity warning labels) to try and maintain my current state of decent skin and after just over a week the flushing returned !! I almost could not believe it was happening all over again but then I started to put 2+2 together and I'm sure this is what my problem is. So it turns out most/all acne medications will be no good for me as nearly all of them can cause light/photosensitivity. At least I now know what the heck is going on and hopefully this might help others who think/(or may be diagnosed) that their flushing etc .. is Rosacea when it actually might be just a reaction to their acne medication (of which nearly all cause photosensitivity !!!!). Oh and also my redness was always worse on my right cheek/right side of face. As I spend a lot of time driving my car (kids to and from various activities/school) it is my right side that cops most sunlight etc.... My left side would occasionally flare up but it was never as red and burning as my right. And also the flushing is/was def causing further damage/distress to my skin ... more pimples and general irritation. My left side is clear as a bell. I didn't apply duac last night and already today I can feel a difference. I still have some warmth and redness to my face but not as bad as the last couple of days when I looked quite sunburnt and felt burning hot ! I guess it'll take a few more days for the drug to clear out of my system and I expect my face will return back to normal in a few days to a week. I'm not sure where this leaves me in terms of acne treatment..... I'm guessing I could be out of options for the moment. But i'll deal with it in all honesty... the flushing and burning and consequent damage is worse than the acne anyway

just another update re:phototoxic reaction ... well my derm doesn't think that's the problem. He honestly believes my skin is just super sensitive to any sort of irritation. I took a month or so off Accutane and all other treatments and in that time my skin got worse by the day & I ended up back where I started with pimply messy oily skin. So (taking a deep breath) I'm back on Accutane..... I called my derm and he said if I was feeling brave just to take 1x10mg per week .. or even 1 x 10mg every 2 weeks !! Super super low but i'm doing it. Last week I took 2 x tablets in a 7 day period and experienced the same old same old red face but much much milder (no ear burning thankfully) so i'll back off on talking it twice a week and just go back to one tablet a week, I'm  much calmer regarding this side effect now as:  A) the flushing/red face didn't last long after I came off the drug the last time B) it seems to be dose related for me ie.... lower dose less severe symptoms etc...  I've taken 50mg for the month and ive already had reduction of oil by 80% . I was a bit worked up over all the stuff I had read and researched re: red face/flushing on Accutane turning into full blown Rosacea which honestly scared the heck out of me and this is why I stopped my course a few months ago where I was on 10mg EOD. Even that (which is considered low dose) was causing me really bad burning, redness and flushing.  So I guess what I'm trying to say is you can still get results on super low (micro dose) of 1 x 10mg a week and have a bit of control over any accutane related side effects by 'tweaking' your dosage to suit your skins sensitivity level. Personally I don't really suffer any other side effects apart from the red face. My lips and eyes are completely fine on this dose. Its a dose I plan to continue indefinitely (which my derm has also said is fine and he has other patients that do it) as I'm done with having children and the acne is something which after 25 years of suffering with , I'm just not willing to suffer any longer. I hope this helps anyone considering ultra low dose Accutane

CHeers, Bek

The first time I attempted to go on accutane again my hair started falling out. It was probably too soon after the last regular course (less than a year). In January I started taking it again and this time everything seems fine.
Maybe everyone who is taking it long-term indefinitely should regularly post updates, so that we can all learn from each other.

On July 27, 2015 at 11:49 AM, HollyS90 said:

Did you lose any hair during the 3 years?

No I did not!

On 25 March 2016 at 10:53 PM, danadanadana said:

On 26 July 2015 at 2:49 AM, HollyS90 said:

Did you lose any hair during the 3 years?

No I did not!

I lost a fair bit more of hair over the first 2 months or so. My pony tail was noticeably thinner. Even my hairdresser picked up on it. it has stopped in the last month though and my hair has lots of regrowth happening so it seems all my is fine. My derm was very doubtful whether it would be my low dose causing the hair loss but in my mind there is no doubt that it was the roacc . It has stopped though so perservere as long as you can and hopefully it comes to a stop for you too.

On April 21, 2015 at 8:55 PM, danadanadana said:

Hi everyone,

 

I know a lot of people have been interested in low dose accutane regimens and whether these work. I will give you a brief history of my acne and my three-year low dose regimen because I was able to achieve COMPLETE CLEARANCE!

 

Acne started: age 13, tried every topical and prescription (antibiotics, retinoids, duac, benzoyl peroxide, blah blah blah) with no improvement. I would characterize my skin as oily/combination, poor texture, large pores, clogged pores, with inflammatory acne.

 

Accutane: went on regular dose course of accutane through a dermatologist at age 21. HORRIBLE side effects and AWFUL initial breakout, but achieved clearance. However, this only lasted 6 months and the acne and oily skin came back.

 

 

Low dose regimen: After being totally fed up with my acne, I started a low dose (really, micro dose) regimen on my own at age 25. I took one 20 milligram pill, once per week. I started at this dose and stayed at this dose throughout the entirety of the course (three years). You can do one 20 milligram pill per week or two 10 milligram pills per week. For reference, I am female and weigh 120 pounds.

 

People, I achieved COMPLETE CLEARANCE. I am talking absolutely no acne, no clogged pores, and no oily skin. I wore hardly any makeup except concealer under my eyes for dark circles. I felt very confident about my skin and no longer thought about it constantly.

 

In terms of side effects, for the most part I did not have any. I have a pre-existing dry eye condition (developed before I ever went on accutane) that did become somewhat worse on this regimen (made my eyes red). However, if you do not already have a problem with dry eyes I doubt you would have this side effect. My skin became dry during the winters but I used Elta MD PM Moisturizer and I was fine. No other side effects at all.

 

Some of you are probably saying "you idiot, what about your bloodwork?". I had my bloodwork done twice per year and never had any elevations of liver enzymes, triglycerides, or cholesterol. All of my levels came in at the excellent range every time. I had bloodwork done once through my work (they do a yearly free blood draw), and then I would just go to my doctor and request bloodwork with a liver panel. On this EXTREMELY LOW DOSE, you don't need to be as paranoid about it. There are many medical studies that support the fact that micro-doses of accutane do not have anywhere near the same side effects as regular-dose courses.

 

P.S. I am now off of this regimen (at age 28) because I may want to become pregnant within the next year. And yes, my oily skin and clogged pores are coming back. I am now trying some more natural methods to control my acne, but I sure do miss the low dose accutane

 

 

If anyone has any questions let me know.

 

Dana

Hi! How did you get the medication without a script? 

Hi Dana! I went to a dermatologist who prescribed 20 mg twice per day for four months. I kind of went AWOL after that and remained on that dose for longer than four months. I stopped at six months for a few weeks but my skin got oily and clogged so I started again. It's been a year and I've been on/off Accutane because my skin gets clogged when I'm off it and being a makeup junkie and an OCD skin-person, I'm obsessed with having flawless skin so I don't know how to stop taking this. Okay so long story short, all I want to ask you is which blood tests you get done. Please explicitly list them if possible. I know I should go back to my derm and ask him but I live super far away so I'm not sure when that'll happen. Waiting for your response!!

Any updates on this? Anyone doing a long term low dosage isotretinoin regimen?

On 2/7/2017 at 1:18 PM, alishamte said:

Hi Dana! I went to a dermatologist who prescribed 20 mg twice per day for four months. I kind of went AWOL after that and remained on that dose for longer than four months. I stopped at six months for a few weeks but my skin got oily and clogged so I started again. It's been a year and I've been on/off Accutane because my skin gets clogged when I'm off it and being a makeup junkie and an OCD skin-person, I'm obsessed with having flawless skin so I don't know how to stop taking this. Okay so long story short, all I want to ask you is which blood tests you get done. Please explicitly list them if possible. I know I should go back to my derm and ask him but I live super far away so I'm not sure when that'll happen. Waiting for your response!!

Hey Alishamte. I believe it would be basic blood work along with liver enzymes and lipids. This would spell out to: complete blood count (CBC), basic metabolic panel, liver enzymes (AST/ALT, alk phos), and lipid panel (cholesterols, TAG). I am not a medical professional so please take with a grain of salt. The main component would be the latter two tests.

On 11/26/2015 at 2:47 AM, matt44bek said:

 

just another update re:phototoxic reaction ... well my derm doesn't think that's the problem. He honestly believes my skin is just super sensitive to any sort of irritation. I took a month or so off Accutane and all other treatments and in that time my skin got worse by the day & I ended up back where I started with pimply messy oily skin. So (taking a deep breath) I'm back on Accutane..... I called my derm and he said if I was feeling brave just to take 1x10mg per week .. or even 1 x 10mg every 2 weeks !! Super super low but i'm doing it. Last week I took 2 x tablets in a 7 day period and experienced the same old same old red face but much much milder (no ear burning thankfully) so i'll back off on talking it twice a week and just go back to one tablet a week, I'm  much calmer regarding this side effect now as:  A) the flushing/red face didn't last long after I came off the drug the last time B) it seems to be dose related for me ie.... lower dose less severe symptoms etc...  I've taken 50mg for the month and ive already had reduction of oil by 80% . I was a bit worked up over all the stuff I had read and researched re: red face/flushing on Accutane turning into full blown Rosacea which honestly scared the heck out of me and this is why I stopped my course a few months ago where I was on 10mg EOD. Even that (which is considered low dose) was causing me really bad burning, redness and flushing.  So I guess what I'm trying to say is you can still get results on super low (micro dose) of 1 x 10mg a week and have a bit of control over any accutane related side effects by 'tweaking' your dosage to suit your skins sensitivity level. Personally I don't really suffer any other side effects apart from the red face. My lips and eyes are completely fine on this dose. Its a dose I plan to continue indefinitely (which my derm has also said is fine and he has other patients that do it) as I'm done with having children and the acne is something which after 25 years of suffering with , I'm just not willing to suffer any longer. I hope this helps anyone considering ultra low dose Accutane

CHeers, Bek

 

Good night, i hope you still here. 

My name is Diego and sorry for my english im from Perº, as i can see you also develop rosacea type 2 (papulo pustular rosacea) same as me. I had severe acne when i was 19. I did 1 standar accutane cycle my acne clear but i also develop rosacea. I've been using accutane for 4 months 20mgxday then i stop take the medicine the rosacea symptoms came back (flushing, oily skin, papule and pustul, itchy, burning and inflamation). This deseade really is really hit me down and i have strong caracter, i dont care about oily skin or some papule, what really makes me hungry is the constant pain because the inflamation or the flushing/burning sensation. I decided to put end of this joke and live my life at fullest, with my girlfriend with mt friend so im going for 20mgx week undef. Isotretinoin is the only medication that gives me "mental health". 

Hi dana,

Are you still taking low dose

Whats your experience

Need an update