Acne.org Products
Topical Retinoid
Acne.org’s Real World Take
Works about the same as the other two topical retinoids, tazarotene and adapalene, and lands in the middle of those two when it comes to side effects. Should provide partial clearing, but comes with sensitivity when you first start using it. It probably won’t be a total game changer but it should help reduce acne.
Topical Retinoid
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 Tretinoin? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
July 24, 2017
Don't regret
I was prescribed Tretinoin .025 cream in November, the cream almost completely cleared my skin within the first two weeks with just a few tiny spots. However, lots of redness in the cheeks, and dry lips came along with this. The cream worked very well for the first 8 months but I started breaking out a lot in the summer for the past 4 months and it's just not working for my hormonal acne since I'm a 17-year-old a boy I have a lot of that around my mouth and cheekbones in this season. I think the cream works well in the winter and the gel formula will be better in the hotter months. during this time on the medication, my forehead, nose and temple areas have been completely clear. this is a good product but not for me so I will be changing now, I don't regret going on this and I recommend you try it for yourself.
March 5, 2017
Tretinoin/ Retin-a Review
So I have been struggling with mild acne since I was a sophomore in high school (I am now a senior about to graduate in a few months) and have had it pretty under control with the occasional break out. I had been using proactiv for about a year now and have only seen very mild improvement. In November 2016 I had a bad break out and finally decided to go to the dermatologist. I wasn't able to get an appointment anytime soon so I went to my family doctor to see if he could schedule me an appointment which he did for late December. In the mean time he prescribed me Retin-a gel .01% and doxycycline pills to take once a day. Before taking these drugs I read reviews online and saw YouTube videos about the results and they looked pretty good so I decided to try it out. A lot of these reviews have talked about an initial breakout or "purging stage" when using tretinoin or retin-a but I had no idea how bad t would be for me. My face went from having a few pimples to my entire face being covered in acne for about a month and a half to two months. I'm late December I finally saw the dermatologist and she told me to use less of the retin-a (I was only supposed to use a pea sized amount but wasn't, hoping to see faster results... bad idea.) She also bumped my retin-a to a .025% cream and prescribed me clindamyacin phosphate at 2%. I have been using these products for about two months now and have definitely seen my face clear up. I now longer have any active acne, only the occasional pimple which I get about once every week and a half to ever two weeks which is a lot better than what I would get while using proactiv as I would get a new pimple every other day or so. I have stopped using the doxycycline now and only have scarring left from my purging stage. My dermatologist has now recommended me to use a dermaroller at 1.0mm to help with the scarring. I hope to be free from acne by the time of my graduation in 2 months. Retin-a has completely changed my face for the better as I am now acne free :)))
February 4, 2017
Works when combined with the right medication
I have used Retin-A cream for roughly two years now and it has really helped with the scarring on my face from previous break-outs. When I first began using the cream, my face broke out so tremendously for two reasons: the first is that Retin-A is designed to bring out all the clogged acne under your skin, this could take months, and I also stopped tanning at the same time, so I didn't have the UV exposure killing the bacteria on my face anymore. My doctor told me that acne is primarily caused by only two factors: hormones and genetics, and unfortunately topical treatments by themselves will rarely give you flawless skin. Benzoyl washes help kill bacteria ON the face, but for most people like me, the real problem lies beneath the skin! After about a year of Retin-A use, I finally paired it with doxycycline and it was honestly a miracle for me! Retin-A is really a pain as far as drying out skin, but believe me when I say the good definitely outweighs the bad. I worked my way up to 0.1% but use what works for you since I have combination/oily skin. It's worth a try!
July 19, 2016
Eh
It cleared me up for about a week. It's great for Anti-aging, but not for my stubborn, hormonal acne.
October 1, 2015
It really works!!
I have struggled with acne as an adult for years. At first I thought I could treat it myself however it quickly became evident I was loosing the battle. My dermatologist initially prescribed me onexton, which helped at first but then seemed to stop. When she prescribed me retin A I was nervous because I had read about the "purge" that users experienced. Retin A has been a miracle! I did not experience a purge and although it makes my skin dry, it has cleared my acne completely!!!
September 27, 2015
Product used: Atralin (Tretinoin (.05%) Gel)
Help!
Wow, what a disaster. I went to the Derm because of my excessively oily skin and the occasional breakout. Nothing that I would have gone through this for. Within the first week of use my skin broke out on every square inch of where I applied this product. My skin which was once smooth with very few problems (sometimes not even a pimple), now covered, I mean COVERED, in bumps. Literally looks like gravel on my skin. I've read several posts and reviews, trying to stay positive and continue use, thinking this was just my skins initial reaction and that my skin is just "purging". It has been a month and literally looking in the mirror makes me want to cry. My skin is red, inflamed, painful, tight and covered in bumps and whiteheads. I wish I'd never started using this medication. I am not even sure if it will actually eventually clear my skin. Total hell. I feel like it is a waste if I discontinue use as I have come this far but please be aware: if you are using this to tame a few minor breakouts and don't want to possibly be TOTALLY broken out for over a month, I'd steer clear.
shimshim
July 23, 2016
This is the beautiful "purge" period. It sucks horrendously and completely ruins your self esteem. I know it all to well. You can survive this period by a) using coconut oil as a moisturizer and b) using tea tree oil as a toner. both of these things have antibacterial properties and help counteract the "purge" period. Also, vitamin E oil is great for the super dry patches.
February 18, 2015
Awesome
In my freshman year of high school i started breaking out really bad. I had a whole bunch of white heads and red bumps all over my cheeks it literally covered my cheeks. I finally went to my doctor and he prescribed me Retin-A with clindamycin. This stuff cleared my acne within 2 weeks. I was so happy that it cleared up my face. You only need to use a pea size amount of the Retin-A a little goes a long way. The clindamycin was a lotion which i used in the morning. I used the Retin-A at night. The reason why i give this a four though is because I ran out of this medication and was to lazy to get a refill. I stopped using it for about 2 months and broke out again. I tried going on it again but my skin got immune to it. Now my acne is been the worst its ever been in years Im very depressed and sad at the moment. My acne now covers my cheeks again and my face is scarred and discolored I think its time to go on oral pills. Ive never tried oral pills before I pray to god and i hope they work because i dont know what to do and high school is not fun for me right now.
January 21, 2015
Product used: Atralin (Tretinoin (.05%) Gel)
Best form of tretinoin you can use!
Tretinoin is clinically proven to clear acne. The formulation of the drug is extremely important, and Atralin is formulated PERFECTLY. A .05 concentration of tretinoin isn't too strong, or too weak. Instead of other gels which have alcohol denat in them (which can be irritating), this has a much more tolerable alcohol in it. Not to mention it's other good for your skin ingredients like fish collagen hydrolyzates and glycerine. Overall, this is the best thing I have ever used for acne, and I'm never going to stop using it. It's that good.
September 30, 2014
Tretinoin + other products cleared my acne in 2 WEEKS
I had recently completely switched up my acne treatment medications. I switched my birth control to Loryna, started taking doxycycline hyclate (sp?) twice a day, and I also take 1 vitamin to improve skin, hair, and nails. On top of that I started using Tretinoin cream 0.025%. I watched a ton of youtube videos to see what it was all about and I watched and read all negative things. I was kinda scared to see how it would work on my skin so I have been using it every other night and wow, I have not had 1 breakout since. Before, I had a new breakout daily, sometimes more depending on stress but now all my acne has gone away. All I have left is a few acne scars from my really bad cystic acne below my nose and that will take time to go away. This product has made my skin a little dry, so I use lots of moisturizer and try to stay away from liquid makeup. But the dryness is nothing too bad. I would definitely recommend trying this product.
August 24, 2014
The game changer
I have been using tretinoin for almost 7 years now and it has been greatly beneficial to my skin. Tretinoin helped my skin to reduce the size of scars as well as help prevent blackheads.
Here are the combinations of topical applications I used with tretinoin
-Tretinoin + Benzoyl Peroxide Cream + Aveeno Calming Cleanser = VERY DRY SKIN, peeling, redness, irritation, needed a great amount of moisturizer... sometimes the moisturizer was too weak to reduce the dry skin so I had to use something thick like sunblock.
-Tretinoin + Oxy Benzoyl Peroxide Face Wash = Dry skin, redness, a small amount of peeling
-Tretinoin + Clindamycin Phosphate + Cetaphil Everyday Cleanser = Best results, didn't over-dry the skin, kept the skin nice and tight, seems like my pores are shrinking, scars are starting to level-off with the rest of the skin, no peeling, no dryness. Tretinoin should be used at night because it makes your skin sensitive to UV rays as well as artificial sunlight. Try to apply this right before you go to sleep; my skin got oily when I applied this and went out. Only use a pea-sized amount to prevent over-drying/redness. Try to wash your face after 7-8 hours after you apply it on your face because it can irritate your skin.