Accutane Long Term Side Effects (Page 11) (Top voted first)

I have a son that took accutane 60 mg a day for six months in a row three years ago. Now after many trips to doctors over strange medical problems, it seems accuatne is the culprit medication that has caused servere joint and muscle pain, severe dry lips, redness in face, eye infections of own immune system attacking itself, systems of osteoarthritis in both shoulders, both wrist and right hand, blood in stool, possible hair loss, abnormal liver function test results in AST and ALT. My son went from being a high school football and track athlete while taking this medication three years ago to someone that is in constant pain just washing a car. After I have researched this drug extensively, I can't believe that the FDA allows this drug originally made for cancer patients to be marketed for teenagers with acne. All one has to do is look online what vitamin A overdose does to someone and then you have the results of what this medication has done to my son. This drug needs to be taken off them market ASAP and the drug companies that make it need to compensate all teenagers that they have possible ruined their future. Shame on them! What is going on here?

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REPORT

scared 16 yr old- I am soo glad to hear you stoped. I wish you continued sucess. I am no expert on red marks, but try a little joba oil or olive oil on them, maybe even add a little in your moisturizer. Eventually try laser therapy for scars....
Melissa, 1st my heart goes out to you and your family, know you are in our prayers. I posted the link of Roche's info for you and on page 46 it does state anemia, It is vauge could mean many things. Also page 8 talks about thier cardiovascular risks. Scott is right please read Ncc info. I wish you and your family good luck and hope you get justice.
Keep warning and spreading the word everyone, I pray one day all forms of Accutane will be taken off the market.
http:/­/­www.gene.com/­gene/­products/­information/­accutane/­pdf/­pi.pdf
Mark-they prescribe it out of one profit and two they are in denial and pharm reps don't exactly educate let alone be honest about accutane. Thanks

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I have read all 68 stories previously posted and I have to admit, I'm scared to even see this dangerous pill.
I am a 15 year old who has been suffering from mild acne for several years now and seeing as other oral solutions, as well as numerous face washes and masks have not worked at all, I met with my dermatologist today. We discussed the possibility of going on Accutane and I have to admit, I immediately fell in love with the idea of myself with celebrity-clear skin. But, fortunately, after doing some research and reading these stories, I have been inspired to decline my dermatologist's recommendation. As wondrous as the idea of clear skin may be to someone, it's not worth a lifetime of discomfort and depression. In response to Scared 16 Year Old, I think I'm going to try your dietary recommendations. And in response to everyone else who has mentioned that Accutane is a Vitamin A overdose, they're right. But one thing those people may be overlooking is that the answer is right in front of you. Vitamin A supplements. Go to your local drug store or Walmart and pick up a bottle of Vitamin A. Take two a day, continuously for several months and see if maybe it doesn't help at least a little bit. My mother used to take up to six Vitamin A supplements a day when she was younger and said that she broke out in hives and cysts, but that as soon as she realized that it was the Vitamin A causing her problems, she got off of it and suffered no long term side effects, except for clear skin. Something to think about I suppose.
As a closing statement- let me just say that my heart goes out to everyone who has been affected by Accutane. I hope that someone will put a stop to this madness soon enough to save countless young lives.

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Thanks Scott, I will visit that their website. Also, thanks for everyone who has added their prayers. It means so much to me. I didn't realize this drug has been affecting so many lives until now. I should have followed my gut at the beginning of my son's illness and looked further into it, but I was told I could never prove it. Do not let anyone you know take Accutane. I know it has only been a month since my son's passing, but I am of course struggling that I agreed to give my son a deadly medication not knowing all of the side affects at the time and that he would be alive today if I had known more.

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Acne Dame,

I am glad you decided not to go forward with Accutane. If you have mild acne, the dermatologist shouldn't have even brought this drug up in a discussion.

Ryan is now 19. He has a younger brother is 16. He also has a mild to moderate case of acne. It isn't cystic in nature. Drinking lots of water, cutting soda drinks and greasy foods and taking over the counter medications have help him tremendously.

Although some days are worse than others, he gets by fine without taking the chance of letting a dermatologist hold a hose while they pour gasoline down someones throat.

Having occasional acne breakouts is just part of growing up.

Best wishes... I am happy for you !

When I started this post, I hoped and prayed at least one person would read what I posted. Now many others and we could help prevent them from taking this horrible so called medication.

Everyone on here that has shared their story should be very proud of themselves. You have helped prevented 2 healthy teenagers from possibly taking this drug.

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Scott- Roaccutane is Accutane in other countries such as the U.K. and such..Roche still sells Accutane in theese countries.
and i am glad that we can help, Keep spreading the word....;)

50yr old- I will pray for you and hope that things get better and everything is okay.

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My name is Aidan, and I'm a 15 year old girl who's been on accutane since Jan 4th, 2010. It's been a month since I've been on this pill. I skimmed through almost everyone's story on here. And I'm getting a little nervous. I had VERY oily skin. No matter what I used to wash my face, the oily skin would remain. I tried EVERY possible skin wash, gels, soaps, treatments, topical gels, creams, face washes. Also every brand like proactiv, neutrogena, clearasil, etc. After that, that was when my derm suggested accutane. I thought I did a lot of research, all I saw were people who were on the pill, and their results months after the pill- not years. So far, this pill has helped with my oily skin, which makes me extremely happy. It's at a normal level where I only have to wash it 1-2 times a day and have it normal. I had acne on my cheeks, chin, and forehead. My forehead is completely clear, my chin only has the occasional pimple. My left cheek has cleared up, and a little bit of my right cheek. However, my cheeks are now scarred.The scarring isn't like crater scarring, it's just instead of having a pimple, the spot is red. Fortunately, it covers with makeup. But my goal was to be able to go out without makeup and feel happy with my skin. The side effects I'm experiencing so far on this are: extremely dry/chapped lips, horrible back pain, joint pain (such as in my knees, wrists, shoulders). Before I started this pill, I was already a generally lazy person who'd be tired since if I didn't get a lot of sleep. I'm not sure if the pill is making me more tired because since the pill, I have been a lot more tired then normal. Another side effect I might be experiencing are mild mood swings. One minute I'll be in a happy and energetic mood, and the next I'll be very tired and wanting to keep myself from communicating with people. Two nights ago I went to my dermatologist so he could see the results of my first month on the pill. He went over my blood work and said everything was going good. (If you didn't know, you have to get blood drawn once a month). My mom and I were curious if there were any long term side effects with this pill. He pretty much slurred his words and didn't say much, but he said something like if I get x-rays spots will show up on my spine, something about weakening of the bones. He wasn't clear what so ever, almost like he was hiding something. What I'm thinking is that he knows that there are bad long term effects, but doesn't want to tell us because he could be afraid of getting sewed or the accutane company getting sewed.

Basically what I'm saying is that this pill has ridded some acne and I will be happy when this is over since I am a teen. I used to be so insecure with the way I looked and now I'm much more happier. I'm a freshman in high school and hopefully this will make the rest of my teen years better. However, I really am scared for my future. Is there anyone who can help me by telling me what the long term side effects are, or if anyone can relate to this? This will help me out so much.
Thanks, Aidan.

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Also, and my last derm appointment that I just mentioned, my doctor upped my pill intake to 2 pills a day. He said that it's not dangerous to do this and that it's fine.

If just one pill a day for a month is already giving me painful body aches, what will happen if I have to take 2 pills a day? I'm pretty nervous and scared. Another thing is that my mom thinks that I'm making a big deal out of the body pains, and she thinks that I'm just saying it to say it. She really doesn't know that I'm REALLY sore, especially in my back. I'm stuck and not sure what I really should do ;/

Thanks again, Aidan.

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Adian-I am the mom that has a 16 year old boy with severe acne and had a severe reaction to Clavaris or generic Accutane. There are many people who did just fine on the Accutane but as you can see, there are some of us who had horrific probelms. Can you talk to your mom about this and show her this site. Your acne doesnt sound very severe. Accutane is supposed to be used for severe cystic acne. The really deep stuff. You may not need it. Really us moms have been teenagers once and have been through severe acne. Your acne will clear as you mature without Accutane. You sound like a very intellegent and mature teen. Please discuss with your parents.

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Thank you for the reply, I appreciate that you took the time to read what I had to say. I have tried telling her, but she doesn't believe me. My derm said that I only need to go on the this for 6 months. I do not have severe acne as bad as I've seen on others; but since my derm tried everything else that's when he suggested accutane. It has helped a lot, I'm just worried. I'm going to try to stay on this for maybe about one more month, since I want my acne to be gone but I don't want to damage my body and get long term side effects.

Thanks again, Aidan.

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I posted a week or so ago and now have my tests back.....all okay but I discussed my severe withdrawal symptoms with my Dr and she said they sounded similar to Heroin withdrawal and that I am breaking new ground with this type of withdrawal for an older person. I strongly suggest to anyone, particularly younger people NOTHING is worth living in pain whilst on tablets and even worse coming off it.....6 months of my life in pain.... seems to have fixed my face but my Dr also said Rouaccutane (Aussie name) can stay in your system for years. Not worth it!!!

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Accutane has destroyed my life. I am 41 and took accutane for 6 months 4 years ago...to make a long story short i literally crawled through my home with pain. i have two young girls and thankfully a great husband. i have had to completely alter my diet to egg wheat and dairy freee to function. my face is still red all the time and i could use eyedrops all day and still have red eyes. my chronic constipatition is unbearable and i still have breakouts...to cap it all off i also used botox which also is another drug that should be pulled from the market..icould have died with the chest pains i have experienced...please never take this drug just drink tons of water and change your diet. i am scared that my life is destroyed forever...my joint pain is constant.

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Max,
If your doctor has not warned you about the possible long term side effects from this drug, I would make an appointment with him ASAP and discuss your concerns with him in his office. You should have had to sign a I Pledge forms to receive this medication. I would ask your pharmacist to give you a detail copy of the possible side effects from this medication, if you don't already have one. Take all this information with you to your doctors appointment and have him explain them to you. Good Luck !

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Hi! I'm no doctor but I did take a university class on genetics so I'm going to explain what causes baldness.

The alleles (genes coding for) baldness is located on the X chromosome.
It is a recessive disorder meaning that both X chromosomes in a female must have the alleles for baldness in order to be bald. If only one copy contains the allele for baldness then the female will not be bald but will have a 50 percent chance of passing that allele to her children. This is because a mother passes one of her X chromosomes to her child. The father can pass either an X or Y chromosome to their child (and hence determine the sex of the child). However, since males have an X and a Y chromosome, you only need one X chromosome with the allele for baldness to be bald. This is why baldness is more common in males that females. Therefore, for males, what determines baldness is the X chromosome passed on by the mother since only the father can pass on the Y chromosome.
This means if you are a male and you mother is bald then you have a 100 percent chance of being bald.
If you are a male and your mother is not bald but your mother's dad way bald, then you have a 50% chance of being bald because her father would have passed on his only X chromosome to your mother.
If you are a female and your dad and mom was bald then you have a 100% chance.
If your dad was bald and your mom's dad was bald but she isn't then you have a 50% chance.

So what im trying to say is if their doesn't apply to you and you are experiencing balding, chances aren't it isnt genetic.

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Dear Anna,
Thanks for your recent reply on a post I started last summer. As a father of a son that has similar health issues, I can relate to your post from the bottom of my heart. You are now in my daily thoughts and prayers.

Unfortunately, I understand what you are saying when talking about how the doctors of our time simply can't explain or don't want to explain what these drugs have done to some people months and even many years after taking them. Please check back to this site when you can, although we seem to not be able to get the medical treatment and answers we deserve from our medical doctors, we all must believe that soon, all of our questions about the Causation of Accutane and its generic brands will be answered. And these drugs will be pulled from the market forever.

I have taken by son to many so called specialist that claim to be the best in the world including the Cleveland Clinic, and still I search for a doctor that puts his integrity of helping patients above the down sides of admitting these drugs if anything, should have been taken for chemotherapy for cancer and nothing else PERIOD. I don't believe I have mentioned this on any of my post, recently I called John Hopkins Hospital in Maryland in regards to my sons health concerns and although they could make no promises on placing any medical problems on any past medications, they have a doctor that does not except insurance money to see him. You pay around $500 for the initial visit and if any test are needed there after, medical insurance can be used. From my past experiences with our so called specialist of our time, some of them are non-profit operations which just happen to except a money from anybody to stay afloat. This seems to be were Pharmaceutical Companies have and keep a upper hand on pushing new drugs and keeping many drugs flowing through many patients to create more of a profit to make them some of the most wealthiest corporate companies in the world.

I now believe that one must find a specialist in the causation of Accutane that is not connected in anyway to Insurance and Pharmaceutical Companies to find the truth not on only how these drugs have effected some of us but most of all to find out what medical test, drugs and vitamins etc what can help us continue living the best life we can.

Anna, I am not qualified to give any medical advise, but please try to connect to your friends you mention in your post. I would bet they are waiting to hear from you and care very much about you. E-mail me anytime if you would like to talk. There are also other people on this page that I am sure would share there personal stories taking this medication and how they are coping to get by. I would be more than happy to pass your name on to them.

Best Wishes,
From the Heart,
Scott

If there is a medical doctor out there reading this please don’t hesitate to contact us. We are all waiting to from YOU !

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I FEEL AS IF I CAN HELP ALL OF YOU!! my mom is an absolute health food nut.. normally i don't agree with everything she brings home but this stuff is awesome!! it's called ISAGENIX it is all natural and it's a cleanse.. everything everyone on here is saying all points to one thing toxins ACCUTANE IS TOXIC. isagenix not only cleanses your body of toxins which can help all of this chronic pain and ridiculous long lasting effects of accutane but it makes your body healthy. so do some research on this stuff and check out the testimonies it is absolutely amazing!!

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Haley,

It's possible some or all of your side effects may go away after you quit taking this drug. Following up with your doctor to get some blood work done one or twice a year may not be a bad idea. My son also has light colored skin. He still has to put sunscreen on anytime he is now in the sun. Best of Luck !

Scott

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I was prescribed Accutane about 5 years ago. Since then I have had Sarcoidosis and Idiopathic Hypersomnia (I am sleepy ALL the time). Doctors from the Mayo clinic to Rush cannot figure out what is wrong. I started thinking about what happened to me 5 years ago. I started taking Accutane. Whether or not this is the culprit I have yet to find out.

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Ronnie,

Thanks for sharing you story with us. I am the one who started this post. Thanks to you and many others that have left threads, we have answered many questions for parents and possible takers of this drug that have deterd them away from ever taking them.

God Bless,
Scott

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I took accutane in the 90s as a teenager. Skin was clear after wards. Had a baby and acne started again - hormones - kick started acne. Took accutane again in mid 90s. Skin clear as a china doll. No symptoms of depression, body pain, except when running more than 50 miles a week training for marathons - that was my own doing. I had another child 3 yrs ago and since my hormones have been crazy, acne like I had in highschool that almost looks like herpes around my mouth. I have large nodule bumps that get infected and pussy and then form into nice little pimple head or not at all and stay under the skin - very painful on my face and neck. I took my blood test 1 month ago, and I am supposed to start taking accutane again and I can't wait. Now - as for depression - I have never experienced depression like I have in the past 18 months, but it is due to a foreclosure, my brothers death in August, my fiance being diagnosed with a terminal brain virus - that is depression. It is unrelated to Accutane that I took several years ago. I think some of the folks that posted that have had issues were probably having Vitamin A overdose allergic reactions to the medication. My knees might give me some discomfort now and then, but that is due to pounding the pavement over many years as well as in the last year gaining 40 lbs.
I know we all have different reactions to medications - not all of us benefit the same - as our genetic make-up is different, hence our hormone balance too. If your child's acne is not severe - and there is not genetic family history of acne (my mother has severe scarring all over her face from acne) then do not subject your child the extreme medication. I don't know if I will have calcification of joints or issues with this round of treatment - I pray I do not and hope for the best for my treatment and for all of your and recovery for all of you and your ailments whether un/related to accutane.

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I took accutane for 6 months in my early 20's. I am now 37 and have been experiencing some very troubling skin rashes that will respond only to medium doses of steroids. The rashes usually end up around my waist and other areas where I sweat / come in close contact with clothing such as behind my knees. I have been to numerous doctors and they have not been able to figure this problem out for nearly 7 years. I have now been recommended by my doctor to see an internal medicine specialist. I am wondering if this is the result of taking accutane. Has anyone else had any problems like this?

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