Acne.org Products
Oral Antibiotic
Efficacy
69%
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 to only some people, and may lead to side effects and strains of resistant bacteria. Studies do show they can sometimes 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 Tetracycline? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
May 2, 2009
Cons:
Well, I've been using this for a year, and its really annoying to have to take it two hours after meals or 1 hour before. It doesn't clear everything up but it helps I guess.
It definitely helps, but I still have acne.I'm looking for something else to take. I would recommend it to people with very very little acne.
April 15, 2009
Pros:
Skin felt smoother, and was not as red
Cons:
Stomach sickness, not much improvement in the amount of acne.
It's worth a shot! Try it, if you have inflamed acne it could help.
April 3, 2009
Pros:
Cleared my cystic acne in a week and a half. Tetracycline worked wonders for me.
Cons:
When I was taking four pills a day (two at a time, twice a day) I felt really nauseous about an hour after taking the pills. Also the schedule of not being able to eat when you want really stinks...
Although I'm sure that tetracycline doesn't work for everyone, I think it's worth a try because it worked so great for me. I went from having really terrible skin to just dealing with the leftover red marks now. I didn't have an initial breakout and a month in to using this antibiotic my results are getting better and better. I am taking this pill along with retin-a at night and clindamyacin gel in the morning (spot treating with BP). I take my first pill when I first wake up and then eat breakfast an hour later. I take my birth control pill at 7:00 pm. I take my second pill around 11:00 pm after I have stopped eating for a couple hours. This schedule seems to work for me.
February 17, 2009
Cons:
doesnt work no visual improvement
i was given this to take for 3 months, one pill a day but it hasnt helped at all. ive been on it 2/3 weeks and my acne seems to have got even worse! maybe i have to wait for longer to see results but all it has done is make my skin red and oily. my spots have come back worse than before i was on the prescription and it has made me anti social and depressed
January 27, 2009
Pros:
None
Cons:
Severe flu like symptoms- body aches, fever, chills. I felt crappy instantly.
Didn't work for me
December 23, 2008
Pros:
None
Cons:
It stinks, it doesn't work for acne at all, hurts the immune system terribly... Just awful!
Cut the bull crap, and go with Accutane! Don't waste your time with these antibiotics because they won't fix the problem even temporarily. Accutane is the only answer for Acne, even if it's temporarily for some it still works better then any antibiotic with less side effects.
November 12, 2008
Pros:
not sure if there is any at the moment.
Cons:
you have to wait an hour atleast after taking a pill to eat.
taking loong, making acne look worser so far more huge white heads
has made my acne worser so far and didnt work straight away
i dont think this works!
September 22, 2008
Pros:
none
Cons:
does nothing
waste of time and money
July 30, 2008
Pros:
It worked on smaller cysts when taken on a 10-day cycle.
Cons:
It made me sick as Hell with unbelievable heartburn and stomach issues. It also dried out my skin. I'll never touch it again.
Don't do it if your stomach doesn't handle antibiotics well. Go for minocycline first, unless you have cystic acne.
July 29, 2008
Pros:
quick and cheap ( most insurance covers it)
Cons:
can be easy to forget dose
im not sure if it is the pill alone that is doing the job because i am using 10%benzoyl peroxide panoxyl gel (6 dollars for a tube that lasts more than a week) along with it. if u plan on getting a prescription for tetracycline from the doc, get panoxyl aqua gel too... the combo cleared my nasty cystic acne up in 6 weeks. i get about one zit a week. and the zits are the tiny little ones with no puss. im always confident around girls and i dont spend so much of my time on this site anymore lol... i just came back to shed light onto my 1-2 punch combo. im so glad i didnt resort to accutane.
Pros:
Cheap,It works better than minocycline, and thats not saying much