Spironolactone
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Spironolactone is a type of oral medication called an anti-androgen that is sometimes prescribed to females. Androgens are male hormones that are present...

Spironolactone is a type of oral medication called an anti-androgen that is sometimes prescribed to females. Androgens are male hormones that are present in both males and females that lead to more acne, and spironolactone helps reduce androgens.

It is usually taken once or twice a day, around the same time(s), preferably with a meal.

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May 27, 2010

Pros:

Clearer and less oily skin.

Cons:

Thirsty more often, need to drink more water to keep hydrated. Frequent urination.

A complete life saver for me. I had pretty bad acne all over my face, some on my arms and back as well. Nothing would work and I tried just about everything. Now my face is almost completely clear and the other affected areas are improving as well, just not as quickly as the face. I don't have to worry about the shiny, oily makeup face anymore. I still have to wear foundation to cover the scars but that's no problem as I would wear it regardless. I started off taking one 100 mg pill a day and ordered them online from InHouse Pharmacy. I stayed on the 100 mg for three weeks and was not satisfied, I was still breaking out but not as badly. So I upped it to 200 mg on the fourth week (I'm going on the 5th week now) and it has worked wonders. Even skipping a day of my usual facial cleansing and gel routine didn't cause me to break out terribly like it usually would. I'm still hoping for it to help reduce the unwanted hair so I'll write another review later with an update. I'm also hoping for the increase in breast size lol. I'm expecting this to only increase in its effectiveness as time goes on so I'm thinking (hopefully) it'll be totally clear everywhere by next month. I had initially tried birth control (ortho tri-cyclen lo) but that only made my acne incredibly worse. So I got off that and started solely taking Spiro.
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May 22, 2010

Pros:

Less oily skin, smoother skin, less oily hair, body hair softer (grows slower), feel happier

Cons:

NONE.

I LOVE this product. Thus far, I've been taking it for almost 3 months, and I've seen awesome results. I still get smaller pimples along the jaw line, but I suspect those will diminish more with time (after my last derma appointment, this is what he told me). Altogether, I don't feel as worried about my face regimen...I actually use moistuizers and non-acne related products to clean my face...which I've never done. I had mild acne...not severe or too bad...but at times was a annoying, esp. more recently. as a 27 year old, I thought I should have clear skin, which wasnt the case until spiro. I tried BC, Taz, and Doxy, and none worked liked Spiro. Now, I'm only taking Spiro. Also, the biggest bonus for me is that i used to get pimples on my back, and now theyre almost completely diminished...just working on the scarring to heal. I am SOOSOSOSOSO happy with this....have read lots of reviews,...and believe there are better things to come!!
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May 19, 2010

Pros:

Lost some weight

Cons:

Makes me lightheaded and pee A LOT!

I've used this for about 3-1/2 months now. It kind of sort of cleared my acne. I guess about 50% It did nothing for the acne on my arms and I'm still getting the cystic acne, which sucks. I drink a lot of water with this so of course I have to pee a sh*t ton. Also the lightheartedness is a killer. If I'm bending down to pick something up I get lightheaded. If I'm sitting down and get up I'm lightheaded. Heck if I get out of the car I'm lightheaded. That really sucks! Now on to the important one. Sexual side effects. All the other ones I can handle but me losing my Mojo is not cool! This stuff has made me not horney at all! I know TMI but no other reviews I read said anything about that part ugh. So If you don't care about being horney and lightheaded then this is the stuff for you. As for me I think I'm going to move on from this stuff.
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May 12, 2010

Pros:

Reduced oil dramatically in a few days...by two weeks, oil during the day was consistently reduced by about 75%. I've never seen anything else do this before!

Cons:

Apparent allergic reaction gave me a spreading rash...

I was only taking 25mg, as I am very sensitive to medication. All was well until about 9 days in...I noticed a dry, red, blotchy rash around my underwear line after I worked out. After ignoring it at first, I soon couldn't deny that it was spreading out towards my stomach. I couldnt believe how well the spiro had reduced my oil and did not want to attribute it to the rash. Although it did not itch, I applied a steroid cream to the area, which was progressively getting redder. Finally, after about 2 weeks I showed my doctor who said it clearly appeared to be an allergic reaction. I stopped the spiro and the rash has begun to fade. The oil returned immediately!!! This seemed to be working quite the miracle until I discovered I couldn't tolerate it. I haven't read about this happening to anyone else, so it is absolutely worth trying if you have oily skin.
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May 10, 2010

Pros:

Reduces oil; weight loss

Cons:

Initial breakout; side effects

I took Spiro for two weeks (50mg/day for one week; 100mg/day for one week). My acne went from moderate to severe in one week of taking this med, waking up with more inflammed blemishes each morning. My derm took me off of it saying that Sprio should never break you out. This drug did, however, dry my skin up rather quickly so I assume its good for excessively oily skin. Mine wasn't too bad to begin with. My head was constantly itching on this drug and it also made me feel cloudy. I really think this drug is probably the answer for most adults dealing with acne. Unfortunately, I'm not one of them. I've been off Sprio for 3 days, and my skin is not breaking out anymore.
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May 7, 2010

Pros:

Clears hormonal acne almost 100%, lost a pound or two of water weight, results are seen fairly quickly - within 1-2 months

Cons:

None that I can see

Like many others on here - I have suffered with moderate acne since 14 and now at 32 I was still getting bad breakouts... I too had tried everything imaginable with only minimal results... I starting doing research and found spironolactone... I knew my acne was hormonal due to when & and where on my face I get it... I wanted to get to the root of the problem and not just address the symptoms... Now I wash 2 x a day with Cetaphil Cleanser (for normal/oily skin) Neutrogena Grapefruit Salycylic wash (3 times a week) Apply Cetaphil 50spf moisturizer (every morn) 75 mg of spiro (every morn) Flinstone Multivitamin (every morn) Differin gel .03% (every other night) Eye cream (every night) I am 90 - 95% acne free for the first time in my life!!!! Spiro is the REAL difference and the real deal....
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May 5, 2010

Pros:

Acne almost completely gone in less then one month

Cons:

none

I can't even believe what spironolactone has done! I have suffered from acne since i was 11 and i am now 23. I went on accutane twice and tried every cream/gel available. This is the only product that has worked for me. I started using it about a month ago-50mg in the morning, 50mg at night. Almost instantly i saw a reduction in number of pimples. Now, after using it for almost a month, i have only a few tiny pimples that are only noticeable to me. I have had zero adverse side effects.
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May 4, 2010

Pros:

clear skin!!
works fast

Cons:

i changed a lot of things when starting this medicine so Im not sure exactly if its the medicine thats working or all the other things that i changed like: not drinking milk or soy milk at all, stopped using topical medications like retin a, clindamycin, azalaic acid, and started using the clinique acne solutions kit.
but whatever it is, its WORKING!! :)

this worked so well for me after only 1 week :) i don't really have the big cyst like pimples but i had a couple big pimples like 13 on my face cuz i counted them! i was so sad i cried a lot and had never had that many at once so i went 2 see my derm and i was like wtf! because i was already using retin a, clindamycin, and azalaic acid and it was just getting worse! so he prescribed me spironolatone 25mg 2x a day along with doxycyline 50mg 2x a day and it has made a big difference! i just have the marks now but no more big pimples on my face.. in the week that i have been using this medicine i have just had 2 new pimples but not nearly as bad as before! i also have tiny little bumps on my chin and cheeks that don't really look like pimples, as in they are not red and they don't ever come to a white head so it is really annoying cause they are stubborn and wont go away, so i hope by using this medicine those will go away also :) So i stopped using all the topicals he gave me because they were just making my acne worse and i have been using them for almost 3 months so its not like i didn't stick with it.... so if u have been using topicals like i was before and your acne is not getting better it probably means your hormones are effecting your acne so i would recommend trying this! & i had also been spending a lot of money on chemical peels and laser treatments and the first 2 times it cleared my skin but the 3rd time just made my acne worse.. so im gonna just take this medicine and use my clinique acne solutions because after 1 week of doing this it looks sooo much better! so i just hope it continues working the way it has been because i am very happy right now and actually wanna go out and do things instead of staying at home trying to hide my face from the world! so i hope if u do try this it works for also!
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May 2, 2010

Pros:

Gets rid of acne...period!!!

Cons:

None

I've been on every acne treatment under the sun, minus Accutane. Every antibiotic, every topical product, both over the counter and RX. Finally, after suffering for years with what I suspected was acne caused by hormonal problems, I went to a new dermatologist. She said, your acne is on the lower half of your face, you break out more just before your period, no other acne med's have worked...you have hormonal acne and need Spironolactone. I started with 25 mg/day for one month. Then went to 50 mg per day after that. Within 2 months my acne had began to clear and I'm now acne free! For the first time in years! I had no problems with this medication. This was about 5 years ago. I took it for about 2 years. Then went off it as I had been free of acne the entire time. I continued to be acne free until I had a stressful event. At that point I began getting a few acne cysts again. So, I went back to my dermatologist who put me back on Spironolactone and again...I'm acne free! My suggestion is...find a dermatologist who will give you this. I kept thinking, "Why are all these doctors treating my symptoms and not trying to treat the cause?" I knew my acne was related to hormones in some way! Especially since I never had acne until I went on a specific birth control and after that I developed acne cysts, mostly on the lower half of my face. And these would get much worse during PMS. This drug is the absolute best! It's cheap and it works. Who could ask for more?!
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April 29, 2010

Pros:

* Cleared persistent, severely cystic acne within a month
* I personally experienced no side effects
* It has also regulated my period, which previously would show up several times in a month, or not at all.
* Affordable
* Worked, when nothing else did

Cons:

* Not able to conceive or be pregnant while on it
* Carcinogenicity

I could go on all day about how much I love this medication, but bottom line is this - I have had severe cystic acne for the last 19 years. I have spent almost 100% of those 19 years on different medications, including every antibiotic under the sun, and 3 nine month courses of Accutane (which produced ZERO results other than terrible side effects). Finally, 5 months ago I read about spiro, and asked my derm. She put me on it, and I literally haven't had a single cyst since! I couldn't be happier. I started out at 50mg a day, and after a couple weeks went to my current dosage of 100mg a day. I typically had several extremely large cysts on my face (the type/size that you see pictures of passed around the web, with people commenting on how gross and unbelievable it is). I have SO much confidence, for the first time in my adult life, and it feels great! Also for the first time in my life, I can walk confidently out of the house without wasting an hour of my day on my makeup. I was really beginning to get depressed after the last failed course of Accutane, thinking I'd be stuck with these cysts and related lack of confidence for the rest of my life. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted. My only concerns with spiro are: 1. That I'd like to get pregnant in the somewhat near future, and know that I'll need to stop taking it prior to then. From all of the reports that I've read, the acne will return with a vengeance. As vain as it sounds, I want to feel pretty when I'm carrying my child. :) 2. The carcinogenicity. Also along the lines of vanity - I'd be very sad if cancer resulted from someone just wanting clear skin. If you've tried other medications with no luck, and/or have PCOS (as I do), I'd highly recommend you give spiro a try. I wish I had known about it years ago, while I was fighting a discouraging uphill battle with acne.
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Finding a Doctor

The right dermatologist can make a big difference to your patient experience and the success of your acne treatment plan. Here are the steps to find a dermatologist who is a good fit:

  1. Use the search feature on the American Academy of Dermatology website to look for board-certified dermatologists in your area, and filter the search results for doctors with a special interest in treating acne.
  2. Read online patient reviews of any dermatologists you are considering and ask people you know whether they have any experience with these dermatologists.
  3. Do your research and go to your first appointment with questions prepared.
  4. Listen to what your gut feeling tells you once you see a dermatologist in person. If you are not completely comfortable, try a different dermatologist.
Find a Doctor Using The American Acacemy of Dermatology Website

Finding a Doctor

Only a select few plastic surgeons specialize in acne scar revision surgery. Be certain to find a provider who specializes in acne scar repair and who is passionate and experienced in this area.

Be sure to:

  • Look at before and after photos, the more the better, especially patients with similar scarring to your own.
  • Be realistic about results. Look for improvement, not a cure.

Questions to ask a potential scar revision specialist:

  • Are you board certified? Be certain that they are board certified.
  • How long have you been performing these procedures? Normally, the more experience the better, however, some younger surgeons may be more on top of the latest procedures.
  • Can I speak to some of your other patients? Ask for references for several patients who had similar scarring and speak to them about the process and their satisfaction with results.

Red flags:

  • Their story changes: As you discuss different treatment options, if they tend to change their mind easily, or agree with whatever you say, consider this a red flag. A confident, experienced surgeon will possess strong, unwavering opinions.
  • Your gut tells you "no": Trust your gut. If you just don't feel that the doctor is the right fit, trust that and move on. On the other hand, if you feel they are the perfect specialist for you, trust that feeling.
Find a Doctor Using the American Society of Plastic Surgeons Website