I am considering taking Accutane after resisting it for many years. Actually i feel like getting on it tomorrow.
However, my derm said that accutane works for only 6 out of 10, and works least well in older female (30s, 40s) with untreated (by Accutane) acne for many years -- and we don't know why. And i fall into that category.
So I am staring a thread in hope to identify certain common characteristics that may be more likely associated with not getting results on accutane. This is not meant to discourage anyone from taking the medication. But more to provide valuable information for people to consider.... before making the commitment to take accutane.
If you have had accutane treatment, but it did not work,
What type of acne do you have?
Your gender?
How many years have you had acne before your first/second/third accutane treatment?
Your age when you started your first/second/third accutane treatment?
What side effect did you experience? the severity/duration of these side effects?
How long was your treatment and dosage?
What (if anything) have you found helpful for your acne? or ever improved you condition?
It must be devastating to have to go through the side effects and pain without it working!!! I hope there is something else you have found helpful. Please do share with us, as you may be saving someone from going through the same nightmare and frustration that you went through. Thanks.
i still had a small acne problem that continued through accutane and afterwards. i stopped drinking milk and the acne went away completely. its the IGF hormones in milk that make your oil glands and follicle overproduce causing acne.
cut out cow milk and all dairy products completely for a few motnhs. you will notice your acne improve dramatically if not go away completely.
seriously i wish i tried this before accutane. cutting out dairy is not hard at all if you replace it with soy milk and products. they have soy everything now: yogurt, ice cream etc.
its certainly worth a try if your at all concerend about the efficacy of accutane and/or side effects.
If you have had accutane treatment, but it did not work,
What type of acne do you have? I have moderate acne vulgaris.
Your gender? Female
How many years have you had acne before your first/second/third accutane treatment? About 7 years before the first treatment. I tried accutane 1x and I will never do it again!!
Your age when you started your first/second/third accutane treatment? 21 years old
What side effect did you experience? the severity/duration of these side effects? I had terrible muscle aches and fatigue the whole time I was taking this drug and about 5 years later, I still do.
How long was your treatment and dosage? 6 months @ 80 mg a day.
What (if anything) have you found helpful for your acne? or ever improved you condition? The only thing that has seemed to work is the blue light treatments and pixel from the dermatologist every 2 weeks.
If you have had accutane treatment, but it did not work,
What type of acne do you have? I have moderate acne vulgaris.
Your gender? Female
How many years have you had acne before your first/second/third accutane treatment? About 7 years before the first treatment. I tried accutane 1x and I will never do it again!!
Your age when you started your first/second/third accutane treatment? 21 years old
What side effect did you experience? the severity/duration of these side effects? I had terrible muscle aches and fatigue the whole time I was taking this drug and about 5 years later, I still do.
How long was your treatment and dosage? 6 months @ 80 mg a day.
What (if anything) have you found helpful for your acne? or ever improved you condition? The only thing that has seemed to work is the blue light treatments and pixel from the dermatologist every 2 weeks.
Ciara
Sorry to hear about the long-term side effect. And Thank you for sharing your information with us. I have a few questions:
So you acne condition did not improve at all with accutane? or it did improve but not 100%? How much improvement would you say? and if it did improve but your acne came back latter, how soon after the treatment did the acne return? and the severity of the condition compared to before you went on accutane?
thanks.
If you have had accutane treatment, but it did not work,
What type of acne do you have? I have moderate acne vulgaris.
Your gender? Female
How many years have you had acne before your first/second/third accutane treatment? About 7 years before the first treatment. I tried accutane 1x and I will never do it again!!
Your age when you started your first/second/third accutane treatment? 21 years old
What side effect did you experience? the severity/duration of these side effects? I had terrible muscle aches and fatigue the whole time I was taking this drug and about 5 years later, I still do.
How long was your treatment and dosage? 6 months @ 80 mg a day.
What (if anything) have you found helpful for your acne? or ever improved you condition? The only thing that has seemed to work is the blue light treatments and pixel from the dermatologist every 2 weeks.
Ciara
Sorry to hear about the long-term side effect. And Thank you for sharing your information with us. I have a few questions:
So you acne condition did not improve at all with accutane? or it did improve but not 100%? How much improvement would you say? and if it did improve but your acne came back latter, how soon after the treatment did the acne return? and the severity of the condition compared to before you went on accutane?
thanks.
Hey 2012,
I forgot to mention that my cholestrol became really high (about 345), considering I started out with a cholestrol of 177.............but anyways here is the answers to your questions.............My acne did improve a little bit (about 30%), but it only lasted 6 months at the most. When my acne did come back, it came back 2x worse than before. The dermatologist gave me the option to start accutane again, but I refused. I was then started on antibiotics (tetra/doxy/minocycline), spirolactone, ortho-tricyclin and topicals, which did not work. Fast forward to now.....I am currently taking yasmine (just started 1 wk ago) along with the blue light and pixel treatments every 2 weeks.....so now, I would classify my acne as mild/moderate.....but it is a constant struggle to keep it this way......I hope this helps because I know how devastating acne is and when a doctor tells you that there is a possible cure with accutane, you are willing to do anything to obtain clear skin...forget the side-effects!! The bottom line is, if I could go back in time to age 21, I would never have agreed to take accutane because the side-effects can be devastating! Before I started accutane, I had mild depression, most of which was due to my complexion...but now I experience major depressive episodes and have to take 2 different antidepressants plus therapy.....Could accutane have caused this? I don't know, but for anyone considering taking it, stop and ask yourself if you are willing to deal with the possible side-effects, such as muscle aches, fatigue, and major depression for the rest of your life.
Accutane worked fantastic for me. My skin was perfect. Yes there were side effects like a bloody nose, dry flaking skin and it was awful. But I used aquaphor for my lips and a gentle cleanser and got through it.
I went through 2 courses of accutane and my skin was perfect for about a year each time but within the last year my skin has been going nuts. So the results at least for me were not permanent 
I have used Accutanefor 6 moths. 60mg at first then increased to 70mg/day I weight 118 pounds. I can say it did help with the small ones but I still have cystic acnes which my derm don'tknow the cause. she keeps on giving me antibiotics all the time. I have no idea what will happen. She said this is not acne this is inflammatory whatever. Accutane has caused a lot of side effects on me. My hair has been falling like crazy. If you have any other option I suggestyou try that first. But please keep in mind that everyone is different.
If you have had accutane treatment, but it did not work,
What type of acne do you have?
Deep painful cystic
Your gender?
F
How many years have you had acne before your first/second/third accutane treatment?
10 years before 1st and only treatment
Your age when you started your first/second/third accutane treatment?
24
What side effect did you experience? the severity/duration of these side effects?
Dry lips, shedding hair, some joint (back) ache
How long was your treatment and dosage?
40mg for like 9 months
What (if anything) have you found helpful for your acne? or ever improved you condition?
Vegan diet, natural holistic treatments and a balanced lifestyle 
Acne appeared at a lesser force after Accutane and diet and lifestyle helped me keep clear skin