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. 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
Adapalene is available in strengths up to 0.3% by prescription. Have a dermatologist? Make an appointment to get this medication. Don't have a dermatologist? See The American Academy of Dermatology Physician Database to find one. Adapalene is also available over-the-counter in 0.1% strength. Here are some places you can find it online.
Used Adapalene? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
June 23, 2014
Patience and Work
When started using this treatment, it would worsen the acne on skin, which caused some trouble eliminating them, but later on, it would start to fade and lessen the appearance of the scarrings. But you will really NEED to wait for it to work. However, considering the price and the time needed to work, it isn't that worth it...
January 7, 2014
Ineffective
Cons:
Ineffective
Kind of harsh on the skin
I have moderate-severe cystic acne on my cheeks, I used this product persistently for three and a half month, nothing really happened. Made my skin dry so I had to use a moisturizer, but the acne didn't go away. When I stopped using it and only used tap water instead, my acne didn't change at all, so it was a waste of money.
January 5, 2014
Did not do anything for my skin, but is very gentle
Pros:
no negative side effects (like peeling, burning, dryness)
Cons:
my acne did not improve
I have had mild to moderate acne for three years when I was prescribed Differin. After having applied it every evening for about 5 months, my acne has not disappered or decreased. But Differin also did not dry out my skin or made it burn, it basically had no effect on my skin at all.
I give it two stars because even though it was not strong enough for me, it was very gentle and my skin did not suffer from any side effects like peeling or burning. That's why I would still recommend trying it because IF it helps you, you probably won't have any problems with dryness etc. which makes it a good option to treat mild acne.
October 22, 2013
itchhhhhhhhh
it leaves your face red & itchy (it burns like hell) & it makes your hyperpigmentation worse
September 25, 2013
Did not work
Cons:
Flakey skin
Made my pimples sore
Dried my face out
Sad to say this product did not work for me. At first i thought my acne was getting better but then things took a turn for the worst and my acne flared up so bad! I stayed on the product for two months but things just seemed to get worse. I quit using it and it is starting to get better.
December 7, 2017
Takes at least 3 months for the treatment to work properly.
June 18, 2013
Mild retinoid
Pros:
Inexpensive
Effective for light acne
Differin is a starter topical in my opinion. I started using this right when I started to get acne. It worked for awhile and when I quit using it my very light acne came back with a vengeance and was now moderate to severe acne. When I started differin again it wasn't able to clear me up so I had to switch over to retin a and oral antibiotics.
December 7, 2017
Acne will come back if you stop the treatment, this isn't a cure it's a temporary relief until you grow out of acne by natural means.
December 7, 2017
Acne will come back if you stop the treatment, this isn't a cure it's a temporary relief until you grow out of acne by natural means.
December 24, 2012
Pros:
Worked for a while to control breakouts
Cons:
Lowered my skin quality
Made face red
Dried out and irritated skin
Horrible initial breakout
Made my skin prone to red marks
After the initial breakout, which bumped me up from moderate to cystic acne for months, my skin did have a noticeable reduction in lesions. However -- it stopped working to clear my skin halfway through. After a few months it only irritated my skin, to the point where I was getting more acne and suddenly started being plagued by red marks when this had never been a problem before. Differin may just be too harsh for people with dry skin already (I used moisturizer daily and this still happened).
December 10, 2012
Pros:
Clears skin for a while
Cons:
Dries and reddens skin
Makes skin sensitive to sunlight
Stops working after awhile
Worked great at first. Had clear skin for about a year then had to switch to stronger tazorac, as my cysts came right back regardless of having upped my dosage of this.
September 5, 2012
Pros:
Cheap
Cons:
No major results
Pretty ineffective. If you have cycstic acne or puss nodules this product will not work a stronger cream or preferably oral medication is necessary. However that said it can be useful in helping to clear some acne. But the bottom line is that I wouldn't recommend it! Benzyol peroxide is better.
June 17, 2012
Pros:
Cleared minor acne flaws
Refines skin
Tighten pores
Fades scars
Smooth application
Wears well under makeup
Cons:
Major breakout within first few weeks
Takes awhile to really work (2 months)
Still get some horrible pimples
Didn't do anything for clogged pores
Initial flaking
Didn't dry my oily skin to the extent I wanted
Won't do anything for major acne (cystic, nodules)
I was really excited about using this product. I have horribly oily skin, get bad acne on my t-zone, and occasional painful pimples on the rest of my face. After the first week or so of application, I got a horrible breakout that was all over my face. It was so bad that I didn't even go to school for a week, and it was painful acne that was under the skin. It took about 6 weeks for it to clear. Luckily, the scars quickly faded, which I attribute to the Differin. The next month or so, my skin was the clearest it had ever been. Then, I started to get lone pimples. Not majorly, but there were still pimples on my face, enough that I went back to the dermatologist and requested a new topical. This product would be great for someone with light acne, as it's gentle on the skin and quite refining, but if you have more severe acne, I wouldn't even bother wasting your money.
Pros:
Didn't make acne worse