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
June 1, 2011
Cons:
Fainting spells
Internal Bleeding
Blood in Urine
Cancer-like-symptoms
After taking minocycline for months, my moderate acne began to clear. I started seeing blood in my urine, and the doctors ran hundreds of test. Then I started passing out, and had a huge tumor like bulge in my stomach. After nearly 2 months of tests, 2 hospital visits, visits to every specialist known to man....the doctors finally took me off the medicine and all symptoms went away within 2 months. The medicine is very powerful, and should not be used by everyone. Always use caution, especially when using antibiotics for long periods of time.
May 31, 2011
Pros:
Clears up acne
Easy to take
No side affects (for me, at least)
Cons:
Haven't encountered any
My dermatologist put me on this about two weeks ago and I can already see a bit of difference. I take one pill everyday and then I apply Clindoxyl Gel (also recommended by my dermatologist), a topical gel. My skin is smoother and there is less acne. It says that there may be side effects (headaches, dizziness) but I didn't encounter any. I think it's worth a shot.
May 28, 2011
Cons:
Our son used Minocycline for 9 months and developed toxic drug induced acute hepatitis and an arthritic like disease. After 6 weeks his liver enzymes are decreasing but his arthritis symptoms are still with him as is his acne.
Not worth the risks
May 25, 2011
Pros:
Not Many
It limited my Acne a little
Kept my Acne under control
Cons:
Even though it limited my acne and kept it under control, I still broke out.
Time to take it. Without milk and such. Hated it
could not lay down
Very expensive. Priced ranges $36-$60
Hardly worked!
I was on this pill since December 2009.
It did however, kept my acne under control but it never cleared it. I still broke out a lot. My other problem was taking it without milk since I am a cereal person in the mornings. It was hard but I pulled through. My third problem was that it was very expensive. There is no real main price for this. I used Wal-Mart pharmacy for this pill. The highest I had paid for this pill was $60 something dollars.
One time, for some reaosn, I got it for like $37 dollars. I don't know why but the price had changed a lot. Once it was $47, $50, $56, $60, $40. I decided to stop taking it since it was making me broke and hardly cleared my skin. It's not very healthy on it. I have been on it for a year and still I kept getting acne like crazy so it never worked and I followed the directions on the label exactly.
May 23, 2011
Pros:
Cleared up breakout and existing acne.
Less redness.
Fast working.
Cons:
Scars are still there.
I had a huge breakout on my cheeks,
around my mouth and nose. I started freaking out, so I went to my primary doctor and she prescribed me this along with epiduo.
In just three days, my face was less red from the acne and the acne itself has gone down. I have not experienced any symptoms maybe because I'm drinking like 8 bottles of water each day.
May 16, 2011
Pros:
This is not expensive, with insurance mine is only ten dollars.
Mostly cleared up my cystic acne, I only get cystic ones every now and then and they are not as red and swollen, and usually gone within a day or two.
Cons:
I have noticed that I have alot of small bumps all over my forehead which was never a problem area before.
The acne that I get leaves behind worse scars than it did before I was on this medicine.
I have noticed headaches and blurred vision
My scalp was really really dry and flaky. I am constantly itching my scalp now.
I have noticed bright red pimple looking bumps on my neck and collar bone area that I never used to have.
Personally, I would NOT recommend this treatment for acne. Although it has stopped my cystic acne it has given me very bumpy skin all over my forehead and it looks horrible. I have also noticed that I pee so many times a day now, I feel that my bladder has become weaker. I have also noticed bright red bumps on my neck and chest and back. I am going to get off this as soon as possible.
May 10, 2011
Product used: Solodyn (Oral Antibiotic)
Pros:
- Free first month, cheap for first few couple of months if you have insurance.
Cons:
- Fatigue
- Shoulder and chest pain
- Acne got a bit worse. Didn't help my cysts.
I started to break out 8 months ago with normal pimples just on the cheeks. Before this, i was completely clear, never had to wear make up at all. I think it was stress related. Benzaclin cleared it up, but then a week later i had a few small cysts. Doctor gave me solodyn. Made me really weak. My menstrual period started two weeks early, i don't know if it related to Solodyn though. But I always get my period on time. I had to stop Solodyn on my third week becus it was causing me too much tatigue. And gave me few more cysts. Didn't work for me, but might work for others. Goodluck.
May 10, 2011
Product used: Solodyn (Oral Antibiotic)
Pros:
pretty cheap (I got a card from the derm. from the manufacturer)
worked a little at first
Cons:
Doesn't work anymore
Used to give me headaches/dizziness
Used to make me sensitive to the sun
never completely cleared skin
I was prescribed this medication almost a year ago and I've been taking it all along. It started to clear up my skin but never completely and it seemed as if you start to get an immunity to it. I hard moderately severe acne. Especially on my back. It did help my back tons! and my back completely cleared, but like i said after a few months it started coming back. I was also using clindamyacin phosphate lotion and a benzoyl peroxide wash on my back, so maybe that's really what cleared my back. They clindamyacin was basically supposed to help the scarring on my back which it did, but it also felt sort of oily. I stopped taking it about 2 months ago because I wanted to try birth control and This interferes with Birth control. The birth control isn't working at all for the acne. I'm going to the derm. this week and I'm going to try to get a better topical treatment. sodium sulfacetamide maybe?
May 5, 2011
Product used: Solodyn (Oral Antibiotic)
Pros:
-Clears Cystic Acne
-Inexpensive with Promotion
-Minimal Side Effects Which Went Away After 1st Week
-Prevents Initial Breakout From Topical Products
Cons:
-Slightly Shaky First Few Days
-Itchy Skin For a Few Days
I have never really suffered from severe acne before and pro activ always kept my skin controlled and clear. Upon enter college my skin broke out worse than ever, I had no desire to see my boyfriend, friends, or even go to class; I would just lock myself in my room and cry over how painful the cysts were and how hideous they made me feel. I went to a dermatologist and he prescribed Solodyn tablets to take in the morning with plenty of water, aczone gel, and tretin-x. I must say that I have never had such clear skin and I'm only on week 4 of this new regimen. The combonation of sll 3 medicines has created a balance in my skin and allowed for even my scars from previous breakouts to heal. I love my skin right now, and you can too! There is a solution for every type of acne...I recommend all 3 of these products they are phenomenal especially when used together!
May 2, 2011
Pros:
Clears skin!
Cheap with my insurance
Cons:
Took about a month to notice results
My acne was severe. I had a very bad flare up that consisted of painful, under the skin, acne. My dermatologist gave me this and it cleared my skin in a month. Now just waiting for red marks to fade.
Pros:
temporarily cleared up acne