I have read that after being properly dosed, the cure rate for Accutane is around 66%. But why does it seem like everyone on this forum relapses? Improper dosing, the 66% statistic is wrong, or are the people who weren't cured are all coming onto this forum while the majority who cleared aren't?
I do not know the actual rates, but unfortunately, I was one of those people who relapsed after accutane. I think the last reason you gave is a possible explanation, and I also think the 66% statistic may be a little off.
ugh sorry to hear that you relapsed. I am at the point where I don't care about the side effects but would be crushed if I spent $5000 (no insurance) on it and relapsed.
I think the word 'relapse' is not the best description anyway. I don't think acne can be cured, Accutane just causes long term remission in a lot of people, sometimes lasting a lifetime. I had almost 9 great years of remission with Accutane, and then I started having issues again, and am now back on Accutane. The rates you are talking about do not even include people like me - they usually only track people for two years and then announce they are 'cured'. Not so much. There are no guarantees. You might get six months, six years, a lifetime, who knows. Personally, the 8 years I spent not buying any acne products or medications more than made up for the cost of the Accutane. I would do it all again. And I am.
Where did you get your statistic from?
According to this study at least, about 1/5 relapse within two years after a cumulative dose of 120 - 150 mg/kg.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22909370
Obviously people who relapse are more likely to post on this forum.
I think the word 'relapse' is not the best description anyway. I don't think acne can be cured, Accutane just causes long term remission in a lot of people, sometimes lasting a lifetime. I had almost 9 great years of remission with Accutane, and then I started having issues again, and am now back on Accutane. The rates you are talking about do not even include people like me - they usually only track people for two years and then announce they are 'cured'. Not so much. There are no guarantees. You might get six months, six years, a lifetime, who knows. Personally, the 8 years I spent not buying any acne products or medications more than made up for the cost of the Accutane. I would do it all again. And I am.
Thanks for your insight. Honestly 9 years seems like an eternity to have no acne as I haven't gone 3 days in 13 years without a breakout. And the high cost of products, time spent using them, frustrations from breaking out just isn't worth it anymore so I am hoping Accutane gives me some sort of remission. I feel like I am on death row with acne and my execution date just keeps getting pushed back.
Did you experience any long term side effects?
Where did you get your statistic from?
According to this study at least, about 1/5 relapse within two years after a cumulative dose of 120 - 150 mg/kg.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22909370
Obviously people who relapse are more likely to post on this forum.
I got the stat from here:
I have permanent night vision loss. Not entirely, but enough that I notice it takes me longer to be able to see in the dark than it did before. This never went away, and I wonder if it will get worse with a second round. I still HAVE night vision, it just takes much longer for my eyes to adjust than pre-Accutane. Otherwise nothing, and when the choice is between not being able to see as well in the dark and having painful cysts all over your face, I will pick the same option every time.
I wonder whats the relapse of female and male separately. mhhhhhhh
That's a good question. For teenagers, I would guess the relapse rate is higher for females since most guy's hormones stabilize. For guys like me in their mid 20s, I would say the relapse rate is probably pretty equal to that of women as I clearly have a long term hormonal imbalance at this point.
I am pretty sure my hormones are out of wack caused by massive stress. I want to work on reducing the stress, but I can not do it while continuing to break out. If nothing else, I am hoping the Accutane buys me some time to learn to destress and hopefully balance my hormones.
I have permanent night vision loss. Not entirely, but enough that I notice it takes me longer to be able to see in the dark than it did before. This never went away, and I wonder if it will get worse with a second round. I still HAVE night vision, it just takes much longer for my eyes to adjust than pre-Accutane. Otherwise nothing, and when the choice is between not being able to see as well in the dark and having painful cysts all over your face, I will pick the same option every time.
Agreed. I had Lasik a few months back so I am a bit worried about vision issues but the mental effects of acne are literally unbearable at this point.
I do not know the actual rates, but unfortunately, I was one of those people who relapsed after accutane. I think the last reason you gave is a possible explanation, and I also think the 66% statistic may be a little off.
ugh sorry to hear that you relapsed. I am at the point where I don't care about the side effects but would be crushed if I spent $5000 (no insurance) on it and relapsed.
I didn't get many side effects, but I did spend the money (insurance didn't cover it) without permanent affects. Thankfully my acne is mostly in control now from changing my diet 
chronic dry eyes...never went away and it's been a few years, and sadly can't say I relapsed, I just never got any improvement after 7 months....
it does help most, but there are side effects, it's a roll of the dice and you will likely get some improvement for some period of time...do the research and make your own decision
I wonder whats the relapse of female and male separately. mhhhhhhh
That's a good question. For teenagers, I would guess the relapse rate is higher for females since most guy's hormones stabilize. For guys like me in their mid 20s, I would say the relapse rate is probably pretty equal to that of women as I clearly have a long term hormonal imbalance at this point.
I am pretty sure my hormones are out of wack caused by massive stress. I want to work on reducing the stress, but I can not do it while continuing to break out. If nothing else, I am hoping the Accutane buys me some time to learn to destress and hopefully balance my hormones.
i ended accutane ermmm like about a month ago. But also i feel that the relapse is greater in females not only because of hornones- but i feel makeup can have some sort of effect. Like trying different products all the time can cause problems i believe. Half way through accutane i just stopped spot concealing my moderate spots because im doing the medication for a reason so i thought might as well let it do it course. now i just take care of my skin (which in my case is just leaving it be!) i litterally wash with a cleanser for 6 seconds with a 1 finger tip because i have really sensitive skin and rosacea! i feel by not wearing makeup (to cover the redness) and cleansing lightly it actually does great things.
I do not know the actual rates, but unfortunately, I was one of those people who relapsed after accutane. I think the last reason you gave is a possible explanation, and I also think the 66% statistic may be a little off.
ugh sorry to hear that you relapsed. I am at the point where I don't care about the side effects but would be crushed if I spent $5000 (no insurance) on it and relapsed.
I didn't get many side effects, but I did spend the money (insurance didn't cover it) without permanent affects. Thankfully my acne is mostly in control now from changing my diet
The only side effects i have now is just dry skinnnnnnn i even had oily skin before hand (my bro did too before the meds and 2 yrs later he still has dry skin) i think also doing a month extra just shot my oil glands in the face.
Its weird- my insurence covered every penny + it was sent to my house which was an experience i never thought i would have (usual i thought only old people get meds sent to the house) My derm made me use direct success pharmacy ( i think thats what its called). idk
I wonder whats the relapse of female and male separately. mhhhhhhh
That's a good question. For teenagers, I would guess the relapse rate is higher for females since most guy's hormones stabilize. For guys like me in their mid 20s, I would say the relapse rate is probably pretty equal to that of women as I clearly have a long term hormonal imbalance at this point.
I am pretty sure my hormones are out of wack caused by massive stress. I want to work on reducing the stress, but I can not do it while continuing to break out. If nothing else, I am hoping the Accutane buys me some time to learn to destress and hopefully balance my hormones.
i ended accutane ermmm like about a month ago. But also i feel that the relapse is greater in females not only because of hornones- but i feel makeup can have some sort of effect. Like trying different products all the time can cause problems i believe. Half way through accutane i just stopped spot concealing my moderate spots because im doing the medication for a reason so i thought might as well let it do it course. now i just take care of my skin (which in my case is just leaving it be!) i litterally wash with a cleanser for 6 seconds with a 1 finger tip because i have really sensitive skin and rosacea! i feel by not wearing makeup (to cover the redness) and cleansing lightly it actually does great things.
>
I do not know the actual rates, but unfortunately, I was one of those people who relapsed after accutane. I think the last reason you gave is a possible explanation, and I also think the 66% statistic may be a little off.
ugh sorry to hear that you relapsed. I am at the point where I don't care about the side effects but would be crushed if I spent $5000 (no insurance) on it and relapsed.
I didn't get many side effects, but I did spend the money (insurance didn't cover it) without permanent affects. Thankfully my acne is mostly in control now from changing my diet
The only side effects i have now is just dry skinnnnnnn i even had oily skin before hand (my bro did too before the meds and 2 yrs later he still has dry skin) i think also doing a month extra just shot my oil glands in the face.
Its weird- my insurence covered every penny + it was sent to my house which was an experience i never thought i would have (usual i thought only old people get meds sent to the house) My derm made me use direct success pharmacy ( i think thats what its called). idk
There is literally nothing more in the world that I want than being able to wakeup and go to bed without having to wash with a cleanser, apply BP or Tazorac, and apply a moisturizer, Literally ruins my day everyday so "leaving it be" sounds amazing.
My doctor told me that 80% usually never have skin problems again. 10% require another dose and the other 10% i'm not too sure...
You tend to get more people that post online negatively than you would with people who have had positive experiences. If you have no problems at all, you are happy and continue on with your life normally. If you end up having problems you like to vent online and see if anyone else has had the same experience as you. Pretty common with most things.
My doctor told me that 80% usually never have skin problems again. 10% require another dose and the other 10% i'm not too sure...
You tend to get more people that post online negatively than you would with people who have had positive experiences. If you have no problems at all, you are happy and continue on with your life normally. If you end up having problems you like to vent online and see if anyone else has had the same experience as you. Pretty common with most things.
i so agree with this!