Acne.org Products
Topical Retinoid
Efficacy
54%
Based on All Available Studies
Strength of Evidence
Note: Prescription and over-the-counter adapalene share the same efficacy percentage due to non-specific research, but prescription strength likely performs better.
Topical Retinoid
Acne.org’s Real World Take
This topical retinoid medication provides partial relief at higher prescription dosages, but don’t look for complete clearing, especially at over-the-counter strength. Relatively affordable and comes with less side effects than tretinoin, the other affordable topical retinoid. As a bonus, it improves the look of skin and reduces fine lines and wrinkles a bit too.
Topical Retinoid
How to Get It
This is an over-the-counter treatment. Here are some places you can find it online.
Used Adapalene (Non-prescription)? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
July 6, 2008
Cons:
none
great product
July 2, 2008
Pros:
works quickly on acne, quells early breakouts
Cons:
dries my skin out. Burnt the heck out of my face at first--it looked like I was sunburned. Have to use extra moisturizer.
It works, but side effects can be nasty. I mean seriously, I look like I've been in the sun for three days straight and I live in Hawaii. So apply sparingly, and use a good moisturizer.
June 26, 2008
Pros:
clears skin
Cons:
takes a long time and now im breaking out but skin still better than it was
if only been using this product for a month but my skin look sso much better , it is making me break out more at the moment but my skin sitll is better than it was. i use t-zone gel face wash in the morning then putting plamers coconut butter on then using differin in th emorning then just washing it with t-zone in the night and putting plamers coconut butter on in th enight and these three products are working well together :)i also got this product from the doctor for FREE!
June 24, 2008
Pros:
Clears my face, works together with duac gel and clears my pimples and spots.
Cons:
If you use too much it can dry out your skin and make you appear shiny and oily, but wipe your face with a napkin. Very expensive but insurance covers it usually.
Awesome product, I've used it before and it cleared my skin right up, but then when I didn't have access to it anymore, I used Murad and after that I used Tazorac which made my skin TERRIBLE. Now I've got Differin and Duac gel again and it is working beautifully, my skin looks brighter and clearer already.
June 21, 2008
Pros:
after a while works
Cons:
at first makes you break out horrible.
I used it on my small pimples on my forehead and after about a week they cleared up. It said you might break out at first, so i wanted to take each part of my face seperatly, so I wouldnt break out all over. When i put it on my chin, I got the worse, blister like pimples, that were really hard to go away. I know its from the product, because a day after i stated using it there, boom, pimples everywhere. I would not recommend using this before you have something important to do, or ever really!
June 11, 2008
Pros:
it cleared abit but took time
Cons:
skin takes a while to adjust and it takes a while to kick in
it cleared up my acne after a month but now i just seem to be breaking out. I'm going to continue it for another month and if see no more improvement i'm going to try something else. i only RECOMMEND it if your doctor gives you it or sugjests it
June 7, 2008
Pros:
It works at first.
Cons:
I've used it for about 9 months now, with little results.
I'm going to try an Acne product that fits me better.
May 24, 2008
Pros:
-the lack of smell.
Cons:
-made my face greasy.
I've been using Differin for about a month and a half, and it makes my skin greasy, and oilier than ever. I put it on at night, and the next day I can feel the slick on my fingers.
Not worth the time, but it could just be me.
Switching to Acne Free, because it worked wonders on my cousin.
May 20, 2008
Pros:
some improvement over long period of time
Cons:
not enough improvement
unreliable, look for something better
May 19, 2008
Pros:
purged a lot of my acne pre-accutane
Cons:
MAJOR SCARRING, face bled at night.
My derm put me on a .3 solution of Differin for a month and a half while I was waiting to get on accutane. I had a HUGE initial breakout that lasted for over 3 weeks, and a lot of scarring from that. My IB brought a lot of acne to the surface, the lesions would be filled with blood and (sorry to be graphic) sometimes would pop when I slept at night. Ew. I even decreased my dosage to once every other day, but that didn't help much. While the medication did purge a lot of acne from under the surface of my skin, I have incredible scars now that are very red & I have to cover them up with makeup every day. I do not think I will use this again just because of the scarring.
Pros:
Works great for mu acne. The zits dry up faster and dont leave black scars like benzoyle peroxide.