Oral Antibiotic
Efficacy
56%
Based on All Available Studies
Strength of Evidence
Note: Should never be used on its own and for a maximum of 3 months.
Oral Antibiotic
Acne.org’s Real World Take
Antibiotics should be used for a maximum of 3 months, provide only moderate benefit and only to some people, and may lead to side effects and strains of resistant bacteria. Studies do show doxycycline can reduce severe acne in the short term, and as far as oral antibiotics are concerned, it’s usually the go-to, but approach with caution and stay your own advocate.
Oral Antibiotic
How to Get It
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.
Used Doxycycline? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
September 15, 2012
Cons:
Nausea if you don't take with food
I should probably start by saying I never had acne as a teenager and it wasn't until I turned 21 I started to experience moderate, cystic breakouts. It was horrible and I didn't understand why I had to get it now. I Just wanted it gone.I was prescribed doxycycline, 100mg a day. At first I didn't notice a difference, only till about 5 weeks in did my breakouts dramatically decrease. At 8 weeks in my acne is pretty much gone, only a bit of scarring which I'm treating with vitamin e cream. I also made a few lifestyle changes; stopped eating junk food, drank lots of water, increased how much exercise I was doing, switched to oil free makeup and face wash and also started to sanitize all my makeup. If you want a radical change in your skin, you can't solely rely on the medication, I think it's important to asses your daily routine. Doxycycline worked really well for me, it just takes time to work. I hope it works for you, defiantly try it!
September 10, 2012
Pros:
.cleared up my skin
Cons:
.if you don't take it with food, it gives you cramps
.takes about 2 months
it really works but takes some time
August 16, 2012
Pros:
Cleared every bit of acne from my face and body, Never had any side effects.
Cons:
Acne does tend to come back when you stop taking it.
My dermatologist prescribed this to me in March, my acne was gone by May. I was so happy that something finally worked.
I had really severe acne, but now I barely have any. I stopped taking it because you're really not supposed to take it for that long and the acne on my face hasn't come back. But on my body it has :/
I think this is because I control the acne on my face with acanya and finacea, but don't use anything on my shoulders or back. But doxycyline really worked for me, and I'm grateful for it. I also didn't have to pay a dime for it because my insurance covered it.
August 15, 2012
Temporarily clears
Pros:
-Cleared my skin completely within 2 months
-Made my skin less oily
-Reduced the occurrence of big pustules
Cons:
-Takes a while to see results (2 months for me)
Doxy completely cleared up my skin and has made it look way better than it has in years. I also use Epiduo at night, but I'm convinced that Doxy is what has improved my skin so much. Within 2 months, I saw significant improvement in my acne, and from there on I only saw more. Now, I am completely clear, and if I ever do get pimples they are extremely small whiteheads. I still get a pustule maybe once every two months or so. I am very happy with what Doxy has done for me. EDIT one year later: I still think Doxy got me out of one of the worst breakouts of my life, however, it did stop working after about 5 months of use. Basically, this only temporarily clears the skin, but sometimes you need that extra boost.
August 15, 2012
Pros:
Within the first two weeks of taking this antibiotic I noticed a substantial difference in my skin, especially on my shoulders and back. More breakouts didn't occur. My scarring seems to be fading as well and I'm in my second month of treatment.
Cons:
Cam disrupt good bacteria.. I would eat yogurt to help with this. Haven't had any stomach issues since.
Great antibiotic for moderate to severe breakouts. My routine also follows using neutrogena grapefruit body wash and grapefruit exfoliating cleanser for the face. I also moisturize with neutrogena oil free moisturizer with SPF 15.. I have not experienced any dryness on the skin from using these products. To also help with my back issues they prescribed me an antibacterial foam which is also helping. The cost is my copay based on insurance.
August 12, 2012
Pros:
Clear Skin!
Cons:
none
I've had acne thats just been getting worse for over a year, i ve tried several different creams and they have just made it worse. So I decided to try this. Ive been using it for over a week and i can see a big difference in my skin, the best its been in a long time! It even has cleared a lot of the acne on my chest and back! I can't wait to see how clear my skin will be in a month of use!
July 31, 2012
Pros:
-No breakouts during use
-Acne did not return afterwards with the help of Benzaclin and a better acne fighting routine
Cons:
-Slight stomach pain if you don't take with food (nothing unbearable)
This will be long but I am going to tell my story in hopes that it will help some people. I began having moderate breakouts at 15 years old (i am now 22) for which my first dermatologist prescribed me Benzaclin. Benzaclin worked wonders for years. A feeling of mine though is early consistent use of benzaclin caused dependence and may be the reason for my persistent but i can't prove that...but last year when I was 21 I had the biggest breakout of my entire life; on top of my normal sporadic acne, my right cheek became enveloped in acne, some cystic, some not. I went to my dermatologist and he prescribed me cefadroxil which cleared up my acne slowly and within a month it was much better. After 2 months of using cefadroxil I changed dermatologists based on the recommendation of a friend and the new derm said cefadroxil should not be used for acne and he prescribed me Monodox (doxycyline) I used this for 3 months and my face improved even more; my acne scars were even starting to fade. During this 3 months I got a solid routine down which includes washing my face 2 or 3 times a day with AcneFree Oatmeal & Jojoba Gentle Acne Scrub and applying Olay moisturizer immediately after (15 SPF version in the AM and no SPF version in the PM) and I still use Benzacline every night before I go to sleep on sensitive areas. I am also meticulous about not re-using towels, not touching my face and NOT popping pimples (something I used to do...i know ew). I find touching my face in a area will cause acne in that area. Upon stopping monodox and not being on any antibiotics I have continued this routine breakout free. It has been almost 4 months without a breakout. I still get sporadic acne but this routine has helped a lot. Before this I had never used a moisturizer and I was using cheaper face washes; this routine has worked MUCH better so far and I HIGHLY recommend it. I am going to post my story under threads for each of the acne treatments I have used. I really hope this helps!!
July 1, 2012
Pros:
Clear skin!
Cons:
None so far,But have only been on less than a week.
Let me start by saying I had very clear skin. A people here and there maybe once a month, nothing to stress over. I was taking tri-sprintec which kept my face clear. I had to take the plan b and within 2 weeks my skin starting flaring up baddd! Like major, I'm talking cystic pimples. Overload of hormones, I guess. It was horrible! I dealt with it 5 months and it continued to get worse. Back and forth to the dermaltoligist. I was beginning to think there was no hope. Retin a helped somewhat but I was still breaking out. Then this last time I went to the dermatoligist she gave me monodox. I was very skeptical because I took doxy and it made it worse a couple months before but i tried it anyway. Within the first pill or two I could tell it was working. The cystic acne was shrinking. The ones that were stubborn and just wouldn't go away were gone in 3 days. My face was less oily. It's worth a shot. I haven't had any new breakouts at all since starting this pill. I have a little pimple by my eyebrow but ill take that over cystic acne anyday :D
May 14, 2012
Pros:
cleared up skin very quickly
healed very minor scars
reduced redness
Cons:
have to always have snacks in case of nausea antibiotics are kinda scary
must be combined with healthy eating/activity to really help it work
My doctor put me on this about a 1.5 weeks ago. I was nervous to take it at first, but i finally took it and none of the evil side effects e.g (redness, nausea, sun burn) happened! Having said that, i also dont eat meat, im pretty healthy/active, and never really get sunburned, so that may be why i got lucky.
Anyway, it cleared up some mild, deep-under cysts and new pimples( if there even are any) heal up very quickly.
DRINK LOTS OF WATER! YOUR SKIN WILL THANK YOU! :)
May 11, 2012
Pros:
Skin is clearing!
Cons:
Doesn't seem to do anything for the redness.
It's great in clearing skin. I've been on it for a month, and I'm seeing 80% gone. However, the red marks left by the acne remains, and this drug seems to have no effect on that. If you're thinking about trying it and frequently get red marks, it'd probably be wise to not only use this alone. For reference, my skin had hundreds of breakouts that were all small. It looked bad, but none of the bumps were huge. On another note, the stomach problems people mention are significant. I'm quite accustomed to stomach problems, though. In my particular situation, I didn't need to take the pill with food, and could feel it throughout the day until I ate. This was very easy to put up with.
Pros:
Clears up your acne