Acne.org Products
Oral Antibiotic
Efficacy
54%
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 they can reduce severe acne in the short term, 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 Minocycline? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
November 26, 2007
Cons:
Started making me nauseous after a while, and my skin got severely worse after stopping.
You have to take it indefinitely, and along with the bad stuff it kills some of the healthy bacteria in your body. That's the danger with antibiotics.
September 25, 2007
Product used: Solodyn (Oral Antibiotic)
Pros:
Stuff works as far as I can tell
Cons:
drys skin a little-not a big deal
I'm have been on 90/mg for about a year when I forget the med or just don't take it I break out... It works well on my face not so much on the back. I used zmax generic it worked almost as good and was a little cheaper.
overall if you have good insurance try it for awhile
August 5, 2007
Pros:
Cleared my skin within weeks.
Cons:
None
Skin looked great until I started missing doses. Then seemed the medicine no longer worked. If you have insurance, the medicine is very inexpensive just make sure to take it consistantly.
March 10, 2007
Pros:
Definitely reduces the amount and size of my pimples.
Cons:
Must take with water and not with food within an hour. Sort of a pain in the butt to have to think about what times you took food or vitamins.
Before this, I was prescribed Tetracycline and that worked well, but not as well as this. This product really keeps my acne under control.
July 28, 2015
It's Been a Month..
Yes, I know for some medications it takes 6-8 weeks but hear me out! I have moderate acne all over my body. I have it all down my arms, shoulders, chest, face, and now I've noticed some random red bumps on my back and butt. Emotionally, it feels like severe acne and I constantly wear long sleeve shorts and jeans to cover it up. Okay, enough ranting. I was perscribed this medication with epiduo (which I only use on my chest and face). My chest and face seem to be clearing up just the SLIGHTEST bit. My arms, however have shown ZERO improvement. Let me remind you that I am not using the epiduo on my arms. I just feel as if there should be at least some progress by now. It feels as if I'm wasting my time with this medication. If it does start to get better, I will update this review but it doesn't seem like that will be happening. UPDATE: Another week in and I'm breaking out like crazy on my arms and face with blackheads and whiteheads. I have also been getting major headaches and sometimes nausea.
June 29, 2014
Product used: Solodyn (Oral Antibiotic)
Disappointed
I was on solodyn for 6 months. While on this pill my acne got worse before it got better. When my doctor took me off the pill my skin was clear, but two months later its back. Seems like it only works when you're on the pill.
January 29, 2014
TERRIBLE ALLERGIC REACTION!!! BEWARE!!!
Pros:
small/easy to swallow pill
Cons:
terrible allergic reaction
no improvements in acne
Minocycline did absolute horrors to my body. After taking the pill for exactly a week with no noticeable side effects, I woke up one morning with tiny red bumps on my legs - they looked like bug bites. They kept getting bigger and bigger, and little did i know that a disaster was about to take place. Soon, this awful rash, which looked like a flesh eating disease, was covering all of my legs. I went to the ER and they told me i was experiencing an allergic reaction called erythema multiforme minor, and that i was reacting very badly to the drug. Needless to stay, they quickly took me off of this awful drug. Unfortunately, my doing so didn't cause the reaction to go away any quicker. I spent a week in bed with an unbearable itchy rash and awful joint pain to the point where i could barely walk. If youre already allergic to any other cycline drugs like doxycycline or tetracycline, DO NOT TAKE THIS!!!! Allergic reactions seem to be something that people overlook when considering antibiotics, but its really something to be extremely cautious about.
December 21, 2013
Worked A Little and Then Stopped
Pros:
Temporary clearance
No side effects (for me)
Cons:
Stopped after a few months
I never had that bad of acne until four or so months ago. I started to get large cysts, instead of the small pustules, around my jawline and on my cheeks. I did what most people would do and go to the derma. He gave me Minocycline and Trentinoin. I used them religiously for about 3 months and my acne was slowly going away, but my oily skin never became less oily (I was expecting it to do so though). However, after about three months, this new type of acne started appearing, nodules, they were like cyst except had heads on them. I went back to my dermatologist and now I'm on Solodyn which is Minocycline but enhanced (I think). I'm still using the Trentinoin (It's quite nice for making my skin soft even if it doesn't clear my acne). I never had any side effects, but then again, I usually don't get side effects for anything. So overall, I would say this would probably work for some people, maybe with less severe acne, but not me. Oh well haha
April 29, 2013
Pros:
Works quickly
Affordable
Cons:
Bad headahces
Dizziness
I'm 28 with adult onset acne. I've taken doxycycline before (also in the tetracycline family), but minocycline has been much more effective. I realize it's not a long term solution, but it has worked to minimize the cystic acne that was flaring up. Unfortunately, I had pretty bad side effects. I started out with 100mg tabs twice daily and got horrible headaches, dizziness, eye pain, etc. The dose was adjusted to 100mg once daily and I still get headaches, but the dizziness is gone. Overall, I think it's a decent product to kick start a remission of acne before starting something like spirnolactone or accutane. It's affordable relatively easy to take.
March 15, 2013
Pros:
Skin is alot better than where it was 3 months ago
Severity is a lot less when a pimple does arise
Cheap in cost
Cons:
Still getting pimples even after 3 months at 100mg a day
Very slow in getting rid of the acne lesions, redness from previous pimples
A lot of discharge with females, possibly yeast infection, and very drousy
This is an okay med so far as it has helped me out a lot, however I am worried about acne coming back after I go off it and I hoped it would clear me skin entirely and really keep the pimples away which it hasn't quite....
Pros:
Cleared up my skin.