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
August 18, 2013
differine review
Cons:
changed treatment and improvement
didnt do any miracles. after one month i switched to zynerit and it helped a lot more, so i would recommend different treatment, but this should help for someone.
May 30, 2013
Kept Breaking OUT
Pros:
Glossy skin
Cheap
Cons:
Dryness
Inflammed Skin
Slow Improvement
When I first tried this product, I was breaking out terribly in the first week. I applied it on a pimple that I got on the right side of my mouth cheek area, and after a week I started getting tons of pimples in that area like 5. A pimple takes forever to go away, like about a week. By using the medication I got so many scars and hyperpigmentation that I now have to wear makeup to cover it all up. It is sad that my acne has gotten worse. I decided to try this after Tetrinoin didnt work out for me, but I guess this didnt work either. I realized my acne was even more inflammed and soo much redder when I used this. If you are reading this review right now you should go buy a mask called the aztec indian healing clay which actually cleared my skin and now I do not have acne at all. If you do not believe me then please search up the reviews for it. They all are positive. Well anyways im glad i am done with this adapalene. I havent seen Any improvements with adapalene, I have been using for 8 months trying not to lose hope but I guess it wasnt for me :(
May 14, 2013
Pros:
turns skin over fast
pushes acne to surface
anti-aging
Cons:
Must commit to SUN FREE LIFE - you are exposing new baby skin - be very careful or at 40 you will have TONS of sunspots and scaring
Constant windburn feeling
Doesn't work on inflamed acne AT ALL
My skin: Dry, very sensitive, prone to scarring, moderate acne with hormonal cysts. Now that I cant use BP my skin sucks. I was prescribed differin lotion 1% in conjunction with monocycline. First 3 days, awesome, things drying up and coming to the surface. But my skin was so so dry. Now this isnt differins fault, but since it was working SO well I started to use the moisturizer cerave pm (aka the WORST THING in the world) and my skin FLIPPED. Maybe it was just accelerated the purging or whatever, who knows but my skin got bumpy and horrible. I changed everything to be simple and kept on with the differin. My experience with it is that yea, it turned over my cells quickly and pushed stuff to the surface. I can't go in the sun or get my eye brows waxed and I really dont like the long term costs associated with this as a permanent solution. I have stopped using it now for 3 days and my skin is getting better. I just love the dark purple scars this has given me which is the whole damn reason I started using it. I just dont see the use for this because, long term it's goin to a) stop working and you just have to keep increasing the harshness b) thins your skin and expose very vulnerable new skin to sun damage even with SPF, don't fool yourself c) skin become dependent on it which is such a vicious cycle I have experienced with BP it is NOT worth it. I really don't think the long term risks are worth the short term benefits.. Maybe in a decade in my late 30s ill reconsider. Going to try rosehip oil for scarring instead...
March 28, 2013
Pros:
Slightly reduces oil skin
Minimizes the whiteheads and blackheads to turn into papules and pustules
Cons:
Dryness
My dermatologists recommended me to use adapalene at night and benzoyl peroxide in the morning. I used this product (adapalene) for about a year. It worked in a few months . I didn't have breakouts for months but after a year my acne came back. My dermatologists said my skin might be resistant to the product so she recommended another product, but, I still recommended to use this product to others that have mild to moderate acne.
March 11, 2013
Pros:
*Can see slight progress
*Easy to apply
*Makes skin look better in general
Cons:
Dry skin
Initial breakout
Tight feeling
Peeling skin
I think it's a very good acne treatment, but it takes a very long time to work. It does make the skin incredibly worse and dry, but that's all part of the process. Use this treatment if you have patience!
January 19, 2013
Pros:
-Works if you put in the effort to do it everyday
Cons:
-Works slowly
-Can make face dry/ peel
I've been using differin for 3 weeks. First 2 weeks, every other day, and now it's an everyday use. So far, so good. I personally love it. My acne was moderate and it's slowly clearing up my acne. Can't wait for the results in the next few months.
June 29, 2012
Pros:
Clears light acne
Makes skin a little softer
Cons:
Not very effective
Not much change seen (I've used it for about 5-6 months now)
Flaky and dry skin in the beginning
In the beginning, as with any other acne cream, it dries out your skin. Use a moisturizer every day. I used Neutrogena Healthy Defense spf 50, and in the first few weeks, I applied it multiple times a day. It is a good product if you have light acne problems. If you have severe breakouts, this product will show you no results. I would consider myself light-moderate, and occasionally it would clear my skin, but then I would get more breakouts. After 5 months of using Differin, I saw little results or change from where I started, so I saw my dermatologist and now I'm using a stronger product. I would recommend it for people with light breakouts, it pairs nicely with Clindamycin in the morning. That was my initial routine. I hope this helped.
April 22, 2012
Pros:
Mostly cleared my acne up
Did not irritate my skin
Gave my skin a nice glow, and made popped zits heal faster.
Cons:
Did not seem to be strong enough
Did not clear my face completely
I would recommend this product for anyone who has mild-moderate acne, but for more severe acne, I don't think it has the power.
January 6, 2012
Pros:
Really stops whiteheads from getting any bigger
Stops infection
Cons:
Dont apply too much: this will result in large patches of flaky/dry/sensitive/irritated skin
Dries out skin a bit (use moisturizer!!)
Differin gel really helps to keep the whiteheads under controll. I've used it for over 6 months now and I don't get any whiteheads anymore, if I do, I immediately apply some differin and they are gone the next day. It's cheap, it works, but dont use too much and only use it on whiteheads! This was my experience, thanks for reading!
January 5, 2012
Cons:
Bad Initial Breakout
Initial Dryness was Horrible
I have currently been on Differin .3 Gel for a little over 15 weeks (that's a little over 3 months). I use it once a day, at night after washing my face with a gentle cleanser (I find Philosophy's Purity Made Simple Cleanser to work best).
Here's a little background on my skin: I've struggled with acne ever since I was 14. I've been on Bezaclin, the Pill, Doxycycline, and Epiduo, all to no avail. I had an adverse reaction to Doxycycline and after using it for 6 months, broke out in the most severe acne I've ever had in my entire life, so I refuse to take antibiotics for my skin.
When I went to the dermatologist in late September of 2011, I had a few problem areas on my chin and cheeks, but that was basically it. After learning about my history, my derm decided to put me on Differin thinking my face was sensitive to benzoyl peroxide.
At first, Differin made my skin scaly, flaky, and just downright DRY. I'm used to this though--being on topical acne treatments for years leaves no surprises.
Fast forward two months and while the dryness had gone (for the most part), the breakouts were still coming. I am a little past month three and am still having major breakouts all over my face, with a concentration of cystic acne around my temples and forehead.
I am giving Differin the benefit of the doubt. I know it takes a while for acne meds to work...but three months later and my acne is worse than when I first started. I'm disappointed, but I still have hope. I can't bear to start all over with a new med and have to face another initial breakout...again.
Sigh.
I wrote this review because I was sick of seeing "Within 2 weeks my acne was gone, HOORAY!" reviews.
If you suffer from REAL acne, two weeks won't do squat. Two months might not even cut it.
But I'm sticking it out.
Anybody with me?
Pros:
not much result