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
October 2, 2010
Cons:
no cons from me...yipeee!!!!
The bottom line is it is a great product and does what its suppose to. But I would recomend using minocycline. ( its a pill) Minocycline works from the inside out to ge t rid of bacteria and the tretinoin work from the out side in so that way your able to get the inside and out side at the same tome instead of just one at a time. Hope these products work as well for you as they did for me! :-)
September 30, 2010
Pros:
- promotes cell turnover, leading to smoother skin overall
- really purges out your pores
- clears skin over time
- breakouts that form take less time to heal
Cons:
- dries out skin + makes it extremely oily
- I experienced all the side effects! (itching, redness, flaking, stinging, etc.)
- takes a long time (in the meantime, you have tons of breakouts and raised bumps)
- initial breakout phase
I used tretinoin cream 0.05% for four and a half months before calling it quits. It took about four months for my skin to even begin getting used to the medication - my skin is extremely sensitive and this is a harsh medication. I never quite got to the point of applying it every night because my skin simply couldn't handle it. For the first two months or so, my skin was the worst it had ever been, but after four months, I started to see some improvements. I've had consistent breakouts for a few years (never a clear day), and while I was using this medication, I had a few, which was enough to keep me going. One thing it DID do was clear up all the flesh-colored bumps on my forehead. It was never really something I minded since there was no discoloration, and I could cover it up with my hair, but it cleared up within a month or so and my forehead was soooo smooth compared to before! (Unfortunately, my problem area became my jawline/cheeks, which had lots of underlying plugged comedones). In the end, I did have lots of hyperpigmentation from previous breakouts, but my skin was somehow more manageable, since any big pimples always went away within a day or two without my touching it or popping it. Plus, I no longer got cystic acne (just the wide/red/painful ones, which don't scar as easily). Eventually, my dermatologist and I decided to change to a different retinoid (Differin) - simply because it's a less harsh form. I do plan on going back to the tretinoin in the future because I believe it will be more effective. However, when I do end up trying it again, I'm going to use the gel form because although it's more drying, it doesn't have the comedogenic ingredient found in the tretinoin cream. (I don't know how much this factored into my breakouts, but I'd rather err on the side of safety)
September 30, 2010
Pros:
Only *slightly* irritates skin, it's nothing compared to other meds. No peeling.
Cons:
Leaves kind of a greasy sheen in the morning
Requires only a dab, goes on *so* much quicker than Dan's BP regimen. Felt like I got my nights and mornings back.
Have been breaking out for 3 months now
Brief history: on Accutane 2x, then Dan's Regimen which worked mostly consistently but I ran into issues when I was dealing with perioral dermatitis (on Oracea for that). Derm told me to stop the BP and put me on the Atralin version of Tretinoin. I've been on Atralin for 12 weeks now, and I think my skin is the worst it has been since I was a teenager before my first round of Accutane. I have tiny bumps on my forehead, down by my temples, blackheads on my nose, tiny bumps all on my cheeks, and my chin continues to get these postules that popup (assuming that's the perioral dermatitis but it's so hard to tell for sure). The only thing I don't actually have - for the most part - is the big inflamed cystic type acne. In general my skin just feels terribly textured - when I wash all I feel is bumps *everywhere*. Just when I think it can't get worse, it does. The bumps start forming into real zits, or it spreads to a part of my face which used to be clear. Based on what i've heard, this sounds par for the course for Tretinoin - it brings everything for the surface. What I'm wondering though, is will this end? I've read many reviews and commentary on this medication saying stick out the 3-4 months, suddenly you'll see a clearing. I was hoping that at month 12 I'd see improvement but I seem to be at my worse. It's so hard to continue on with something that is so discouraging. The only reason I'm going to stick it out another 4-6 weeks (maybe more?) is because if I do stop then at least I don't have to always wonder if the issue was that I just didn't stick it out a lot. I've heard reviews of people who say this med doesn't work but they have stopped before the allotted time -- what I'm curious is if anyone has experience with this medication that has been on it for 5-6+ months and *didn't* see worth it results? If anyone has thoughts or is going through this same process, would love
September 28, 2010
Pros:
Gets rid of whiteheads and heals skin fast! Nice glow to skin.
Cons:
Takes a looong time to work. MUST be patient! First two weeks I had peeling and dryness. Broke out like crazy! Got new zits I thought i never had.
Ive been using the .025% retin A cream for 5 weeks. I've been semi religious with it, putting it on every night except for a few missed days. I'm still purging but all the whiteheads I had under my skin (and boy did I have a lot!) are nearly gone. The only thing I'm gonna say is that you may need to go on an antibiotic while you're on this. I had persistent acne, hard nodules and itchy clusters of cysts along my jawline. My derm put me on solodyn and this seems to be significantly calming down the breakout stage. So now I feel like the retin A is just working on the visible acne I have. Have lots of red marks from the acne that got brought up and could not help but pop and pick at. Again its only been 5 weeks, so hopefully if I keep using it it will help with that as well. Oh and for some reason, the cream version seems to make my skin oily when I make up in the morning. Not sure why. Best of luck to you all. This also shall pass!!
September 20, 2010
Pros:
clears up skin 100%
works on scars and dark spots
cheap
Cons:
drying
redness
Ive tried every OTC acne medication you can think of.. from proactiv, acne free, BP, to oxy. nothing worked and most made my completion worse (anything with BP). when i first got retin a i only used it for a few days and stoped due to the redness and ib(or so i thought). Anyway about two weeks ago I decided to give it a try, i mean I didnt have anything to loose! The first few days I didnt see any results.. Around the fifty day my face was so dry and red i looked like a lobster shedding.. lol I decided to tough it out and by my 2nd week im almost completely clear! I still have to use moisturizer day and night but if thats the cost for clear skin i can live with it. I used a pea sized amout at bed time, wait an hr and use cetaphil an hr later. The cetaphil really works on the flaking skin and redness, its two oily looking to use in the day time so i use biore with 15spf during the day. NOTHING has ever given me the results that this has, I only wish I had have used it earlier! Oh ya and the IB wasnt really a breakout at all for me, more so of the acne under my skin coming to the surface! If your put on retin a tough it out, the results are amazing!!
September 16, 2010
Pros:
The medication does what it says it does - it increases cell turnover, which, over time, gives the complextion a soft, even tone. A side effect of this process leads to a reduction.elimination of acne **IF** the lack of cell turnover is the primary factor contributing to ones acne. With that said, I do beleive that this medication will "help" (i.e. a little or a lot) the condition of "most" acne sufferers, assuming one adheres to the treatment consistently for 3 months.
Cons:
The initial break out is horrendous and can last for weeks, even into the 2nd, possibly third month. It lasted a long time for me. It almost always gets WORSE before it gets better.
Irritation, redness and increased skin sensitivity lasted almost as long as the initial break out.
It was very expensive for me because I have an ugly deductable quota.
I've been using this product for 3 months exactly. It is key to use a mild cleanser and moisturizer, such as Cetaphil, while on this product.
My main problem is raised, flesh-colored pimples on my lower cheeks and jawline. Retin A helps with my old PIH and heals new red marks within 3-5 days. The non-problematic skin areas (forehead, upper cheeks, temples, chin) look amazing. My lower cheeks and jawline, however, still present with those dang flesh colored bumps. There is probably a 75% reduction in those bumps, however. I must point out, though, that my acne appears to be hormonal, and Retin A just can't keep up with those particular bumps. I am on the weakest strength and plan to move to .10 next month. I really feel that a stronger strength will work. Also, I am now on Spironolactone to help combat the hormonal acne.
Retin A appears to work as intended (promote cell turnover) which should lead to a reduction is pimples (minimally or extremely). Its effects can take longer to notice in some people, which is why I'm not giving up at the 3 month mark even though I'm not completely clear. As long as you're seeing continual improvement at the 3 month mark, I would suggest giving it another 3 months and possible increasing the strength of your dose at that time if you're improved, but not completely clear.
September 13, 2010
Pros:
It works! Yes it does! I can vouch for that
Skin looks brighter and more vibrant.
Acne is a thing of the past.
Scars are fading
Hyperpigmentation fading
Cons:
Takes time to work (not really a con)
Dries the skin out
Bottom line is that retin-a cream is a breakthrough in skincare. The stuff has helped me so much. I got prescribed it by my derm as a means to helping with my moderate acne scarring since I am a person of indian decent and basically lasers and peels are a no no for me. After 3 years on Accutane, the stuff also now controls my acne too. My shallow scars and sever hyperpigmentation has also imporved drastically since I started using it 7 months ago so keep at it people! You will see results!
September 3, 2010
Pros:
-Under the surface acne dried up
-Clear soft skin
-Hyperpigmentation going away
Cons:
-Dries out dry areas even more
-Does make for some pustules
-Skin gets very fragile
I have a good base of very fair skin marred by large cystic pustules, scabs and scarring. I have done a combination of laser therapy, chem peels, and use Tretinoin every night. So my review is based on the combination of these elements, but I LOVE the stuff. My skin looks AMAZING! It keeps pustules from remaining hot and flared and quickly brings them to a head, and promotes rapid healing. However, it doesn't "clean" your pores...I feel like there is still gunk in there and the tretinoin just makes it kind of dead gunk instead of active, pimple-causing gunk. Also, it does dry out your face, so I use hydrocortisone cream or ointment on the dry patches. I wouldn't be caught dead without this stuff though. It stops a breakout in its tracks!
September 3, 2010
Pros:
Softens skin
Cons:
Eventually caused acne as well as skin changes
Initially, this was the only thing that worked on the comedonal acne (blackhead, whiteheads coming in for no reason) on my forehead. Eventually however, after decreasing my usage, I noticed that anytime I would use it again on my forehead, acne would flare up. Additionally, the morning after using it on my cheeks, there was inflamed comedonal acne everywhere.
September 2, 2010
Pros:
-Faded My Hyperpigmentation
-Made My Skin Smoother
-Improved Skin Texture
-Got Rid of Excess Skin Oil
Cons:
-Made Me Break Out Everytime I Used It For The First 2-3 Months
-After 3-4 Months, Skin Is Amazing! :)
This is a great product, I used it at night and I used BenzaClin in the morning. This product will make you go through a long phase of breaking out everytime you use it but in essence, it drags all the dirt,oil, and ance to the surface so it can be released by your body. After about 3 months of breaking out from the product, your skin just spontaneously becomes amazing! There's no other way I could word that. Your skin becomes smooth, clear, and all the ance scars vanish and you'll be glad you went through heck because it won't matter anymore.
Pros:
It gets rid of mostly all acne types. works pretty quick. covered by insurence.