It shouldnt be a problem that u took accutane.. i think most doctors recommend waiting a year before having any type of scar revision... i took accutane about 4 years ago as well. wish i hadnt, but oh well...

I think some use vitamin c topicals, never heard that A promotes collagen ( accutane is vitamin a and healing tends to be worse while on tane so not too sure bout that.) i get the feeling from reading the posts that most are using vitamin c tablets about 1000-2000mg daily and terproline as a topical. that is what i am doing...

hope that helps..

It shouldnt be a problem that u took accutane.. i think most doctors recommend waiting a year before having any type of scar revision... i took accutane about 4 years ago as well. wish i hadnt, but oh well...

I think some use vitamin c topicals, never heard that A promotes collagen ( accutane is vitamin a and healing tends to be worse while on tane so not too sure bout that.) i get the feeling from reading the posts that most are using vitamin c tablets about 1000-2000mg daily and terproline as a topical. that is what i am doing...

hope that helps..

I read it in the Dermaroller Support Thread, 4th article down (the PCI one). This is a quote from it: "One cannot exaggerate the value of vitamin A

in a rejuvenation program for skin, especially with

PCI, because in this case, we are specifically trying to

stimulate cells to induce collagen to their maximum.

Vitamin A in physiologic doses will stimulate cell

growth, the release of growth factors, angiogenesis

[7], and the production of healthy new collagen. The

DNA effects of vitamin A interact in parallel with the

growth factors released by PCI. Adequate nourish-

ment of the skin with vitamin A (not necessarily as retinoic acid but also as retinyl esters, retinal, or retinaldehyde) will ensure that the metabolic pro-

cesses for collagen production will be maximized and

the skin will heal as rapidly as possible [8]. "

They also explain how Vitamin C is equally important in producing collagen. The whole article is about the significance of both Vitamin A and C, and also E. They say the skin should contain the highest possible amounts of vitamin A 3 weeks before rolling.

Maybe the article is full of shit, but then again is is posted in the dermaroller support thread on this site. I think you guys should read it and then we can get a second opinion on this vitamin A thing. It was a very good read too. A lot of useful information.

Don't use topical or high doses of vitamin A if you have taken accutane. Doesn't matter how long ago it was. Can explain why via PM if you want to know why.

So, it's not wise to use retin-a / taz after usage of accutane lamarr?

Don't use topical or high doses of vitamin A if you have taken accutane. Doesn't matter how long ago it was. Can explain why via PM if you want to know why.

send me a pm. i need to know.

^ Me aswell. I'd like to know! Thanks

Me too please!

Thank you

Ok guys, i havent received a PM from Lamarr yet, but earlier today i went on a website call medhelp.org and asked doctor Bustillo the same question, and whether they are taken orally or topically. I basically told him i was on 3 courses of accutane (2001,2003,2005, 40mg/day) and the last one was 4 years ago (2005). This was his reply:

Rob,

Vitamins A&C are taken topically. There is no ( additional) risk to using these of you have been off accutane for more than 4 months. The dermaroller CIT is great when performed by someone with experience.

Stay well

Andres

Andres Bustillo, MD, FACS

Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery

-----

So i dont know what else to think, unless Lamarr sends me some kind of study that shows that it is harmful. Personally i dont really think there could be any harmful effects. It was 4 years ago. The only possible problem i can see is further liver damage using vitamin A, on top of the liver damage that Accutane apparently causes.

I and a number of other people who have taken accutane before have then gone on to use topical retinoids or oral vitamin A to find that we obtain spontaneous scarring. That is scarring which forms from NOTHING and leaves you with atrophic scarring like from accutane.

Now this probably won't happen to most of you, but i have seen a good 5-6 cases where they didn't realise the cause. But i now know the casual link.

Google AMVC scarring/

Edit: once these people stopped using the topical or oral vitamin A the spontaneous scarring stopped.

Those of you who use taz retin-a etc for acne or scarring can continue using it but just bare in mind what i have said, if you start noticing anything fishy.

I strongly recommend against it for the first 3-5 day after rolling or needling though.

lemmar what dose of accutane were you on before you got AMVC scaring ... i went on a very lose dose of accutane about ayear ago ... but i quit after about 10 days ... i was on 5mg a day for 10 days ... 50mg in total ... do you think this is enough to cause AMVC scaring ?

Also i sent you a pm about bactroban ... if you get some free time could you reply ?

I've bought a 1mm derma roller, my only problem is WHEN to use it! I don't fancy going out of the house with a red face. How did you get around this?

I and a number of other people who have taken accutane before have then gone on to use topical retinoids or oral vitamin A to find that we obtain spontaneous scarring. That is scarring which forms from NOTHING and leaves you with atrophic scarring like from accutane.

Now this probably won't happen to most of you, but i have seen a good 5-6 cases where they didn't realise the cause. But i now know the casual link.

Google AMVC scarring/

Edit: once these people stopped using the topical or oral vitamin A the spontaneous scarring stopped.

Those of you who use taz retin-a etc for acne or scarring can continue using it but just bare in mind what i have said, if you start noticing anything fishy.

I strongly recommend against it for the first 3-5 day after rolling or needling though.

Also, what about vitamin A that you get from diet .... will this cause scaring aswel ?

I've bought a 1mm derma roller, my only problem is WHEN to use it! I don't fancy going out of the house with a red face. How did you get around this?

Friday after work/school and stay home for the weekend

Do it as soon as holidays start and when you know you don't have to go out

lemmar what dose of accutane were you on before you got AMVC scaring ... i went on a very lose dose of accutane about ayear ago ... but i quit after about 10 days ... i was on 5mg a day for 10 days ... 50mg in total ... do you think this is enough to cause AMVC scaring ?

Also i sent you a pm about bactroban ... if you get some free time could you reply ?

I wouldn't worry about it atall then, that dose is miniscule!! i was on 80mg for nearly 5 months.

I wish I could sue Accutane for scarring me after 6 months of having a clear face. Only to have it come back the same season the following year.

I was on 60 mg for 7 months.

What rollers are you all purchasing? There are many can nyone recommend a good one? Also is there difference when using 3-line rollers or the normal ones?

lamarr... do you have any before pics? To compare before and after.

Lamarr, i posted this question on another thread on this board. I need help chosing topical creams.

i know Bio-Oil contains both vitamin A and E. Does anyone use Bio-Oil for their Vitamin A application. I know it contains Vitamin A, i just dont know if it contains a sufficient amount for this type of procedure. The link to the type i will buy is here: http://www.bio-oil.com/en/uses.html

This Bio Oil is really good for scars stretch marks and uneven skin tone. It is also Non-greasy which means i probably wont break out from it.

I did some more searching in my grocery store and found a Vitamin A cream from Jamieson. Its called provitamin A, retinal renewal cream. this is what it looks like:

http://www.feelbest.com/Pages/ItemDetails....;ID=06464205307

Both prices are around $10, i was thinking of using the Bio Oil over the Jamieson vitamin A cream. What do you guys think???

For vitamin C i went to Shopper Drug mart and found one called Neostrata-- vitamin C Concentrate. It looks like this: http://www.neostrata.ca/products/-ingredie...concentrate/48/

there is also a cream that looks like this:

http://www.neostrata.ca/products/-ingredie...-brightener/49/

The first one are pills in a jar that i think you break apart and then apply on the face. Both are L-ascorbic acid. I was thinking of getting the pill ones. What do you guys think??

The reason i'm wondering about this is because i know vitamin A and C are crucial if you want to get the best possible results with dermarolling/dermastamp. They help promote collagen growth tremendously. I also was told that the best results are with taking these vitamins topically, not orally.

Let me know what you guys think, thanks.

edit: Neostrata also has retino cream found here: http://www.neostrata.ca/products/-ingredient/retinol/

I need help knowing which ones to get. I'm so lost.

Rob

Wow, thats scarry about the vitamin A!!

So it's been about a week since my first roll. My smaller scars seem to be less noticeable. No big changes yet though.

Lamarr: How long or after how many sessions did you really start seeing big improvement? THX!

and how did you stop your spontaneous scaring ?

Hi Lamarr, would you recommend this treatment for someone who still gets acne, and has a lot of red marks and discolouration? Would the LED lights be useful on their own for while without dermarolling, to try and get the acne under control?

Has anyone from the UK purchased LED lights? I'm not sure where to get them from, the shipping is likely to be very expensive ordering from the US.

Also about the vitamin A, how much should we be taking if we have previously been on accutane, should we just get it from our food, without any supplements at all?

Thanks.

Just to let people know i think the Vitamin A and C should be taken as TOPICALS, not as oral supplements, to achieve the desired effects.

Think about it. If you take oral supplements, the vitamin A + C are dispersed throughout the body. But if you place those vitamins on your skin, in the area that needs it, you will get more concentrated amounts of those vitamins where they are needed most.

In every article i've read not one has mentions that these vitamins are taken orally, they have all used topicals to help the healing and promote collagen growth.

Here is an interesting link... Has anyone tried Pineapple Bromelain before?

http://www.newsfinder.org/site/more/wound_healing/

by the way, puritan has really good prices on vitamins and you can find all sorts of things!.. you can order 2 and get 3 free if im not mistaken.. they are good quality too... Ive been ordering from their website for a while now.. just in case anyone is looking for vitamins...

Don't use topical or high doses of vitamin A if you have taken accutane. Doesn't matter how long ago it was. Can explain why via PM if you want to know why.

Can anyone elaborate on this? Or send me the PM if you got one please.

What is a high dose of Vitamin A, 8000IU ok?