Does Levothyroxine Cause Acne (Page 4)
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I have been taking 25mcg for about 6 weeks and feel much better, no weight loss, but no gain. I have developed acne on my chin and around the right side of my mouth...is this a side effect? Anyone else had this happen?

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66

After complaining to my doc about being tired...and having blood tests done I was told I was borderline hypothyroid by my doc. I was then prescribed a very low dose of synthroid...immediately my skin broke out in cyst type acne along the chin cheeks and hairline (never had acne in these places before!! and these very very painful cysts with an obvious head)...I am 48 and previous to this I had very clear acne free skin...I continued taking the synthroid for 5 months trying to deal with the ever increasing acne and scarring...and then suddenly it occurred to me that I had started synthroid around the same time as these breakouts started.-BTW the synthroid did not help me get over my fatigue if anything I found I was even more tired...
synthroid was discontinued and my skin has cleared up ...I had one or two more cysts in the week following but even those dried up on their own. Now I am back to my normal well behaved but OILY skin. I would say you should check with your doctor before discontinuing the medication though.

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65

First of all, make sure you really need the medication! When I was 24, my doctor at the time told me I'd have to take it every day for the rest of my life. In retrospect, I think I may not have been getting the nutrients I needed and that caused the hypothyroidism (the doctor was unaware of this). Now, at 37, my doctor suggested trying to come off of Levothyroxine as I was on such a low dose. With diet and lifestyle changes, I think the hypothyroidism reversed itself! I have been off it for about 8 weeks now, and I feel great, have plenty of energy and none of the symptoms of hypothyroidism. My skin is 100% clear for the first time since I started taking the medicine. I never made the connection until now. I tried Proactive, Clindamycin-Benzoil Peroxide, and Doxycycline (along with lots of other OTC choices). They had awful side effects and never worked as well as I'd hoped. I changed my makeup and barely wear any, I changed to a very gentle facial cleanser, I changed my diet, etc. There were some minor improvements, but I was still breaking out - until I stopped Levothyroxine. After reading all of these comments, I am convinced that it was the culprit! I'm so relieved to be off of it now.

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64

I have been on Levothyroxine for about 4 months and my acne has gotten progressively worse as time goes on. My acne is also clustered on both cheeks and my forehead. I have never had acne this horrible in my entire life. Previous to taking Levothyroxine my skin was completely clear.

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63

I am not sure switching to a name brand is going to help. Most of the posters here are saying they are taking Levothyroxine, which IS the name brand. I know I have been taking Levothyroxine for about 6 weeks. In the last week, I have developed really bad cystic acne (painful, under the skin bumps that don't come to a head. They won't "pop" and leave scars) on my chin and around my mouth.

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62

i have been on Levothyroxine for about 6 mnths now, as soon as i started on my lowest dose i began to get big boil like spots in clusters around my cheeks by my nose.
Now I am on 100mg and i have these spots on cheeks, by mouth on chin and forehead, No treatments seem to be working and I am seriously considering stopping my medication. This has knocked my confidence badly.

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61

I have the same exact problem as all of you. I never had acne until starting the medicine. It's quite embarrassing. The good news is I found a skin care line that has helped tremendously. I began selling Arbonne in November and have had great luck with their products. If anyone is interested in learning more about their pure and safe products email me at {edited for privacy}. It really does help, I have before and after pics.

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60

Wow! Very glad I read this thread. I have been on Levothyroxine for the past 5 years with worsening acne on my chin, around my lips and on my forehead. It is cyst-like and painful. I have always had good skin and this acne is worse than I have ever had. I am 41 so this seems ridiculous to me to have an acne problem this bad now. In an attempt to figure out what is going on I had my hormone levels checked with no unusual imbalances. I changed birth control to low hormone and even put a filter on my shower head to get rid of chlorine in case that was causing the problem. I have changed how much sugar I take in as well but nothing has worked. It occurred to me that the acne started when I started the Levo. I am subclinical so I don't really need to be on it so after reading this thread I think it's definitely time to switch or just stop taking the stuff. Thank you all for posting your experiences! I am certain you have helped my situation.

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59

It has to be! I was on the the generic brand and it didn't work for me. They bumped me up to the name brand and since then I've had severe acne, mainly on my chin, and behind my ear and get this, on my stomach! They even had to put me on doxycycline because the acne in my hair (Behind my ear) got infected and inflamed the glands behind my ear.

I was on the highest dose (200 mcg of levothyroxine and NEVER had a problem) I got moved to 200 mcg of Synthroid and I'm breaking out all over!)

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58

I started levothyroxine on Sept 4th, 2013. (025). I started getting acne, painful cysts that don't break, all around my chin and mouth area, and could not figure out what was happening. I would use salicylic pads, and benzoyl peroxide and when three of them were starting to heal another three would pop up somewhere else. It has left scars. I am 63 and have ALWAYS had marvelous looking skin which I take care of. So this was a shock to me. I also had blurry vision and a stye on my right eye which my ophthalmologist says came from the medicine disrupting my oil glands all over. I was going to switch to Synthroid but saw that many patients got this also from that. So I just stopped the medicine altogether on Oct 30th and all my symptoms, the acne and the blurry vision have stopped. I am getting bloodwork done again to see what we can do to resolve this. I still have scars from the acne!!!

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57

Have been on levothyroxin for a few years. 50mcg. Last year and a half I have had a rash on my butt and itching both there and different parts of the body. I have tried to go through the list of possibilities and decided to check "testimonials" of levo...was surprised to read about the acne problems. Has anyone else experienced "butt rash" and itching?

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56

I am so glad I found this information! I have been taking thyroid medication - levothyroxine since I was in grade school! I'm currently on 125 mcg. I have suffered from acne since high school, but the last few years have been horrible!! I am soon to be 29 years old and am sooo embarrassed of my skin! I have spent hundreds of dollars on washes, treatments, and acne devices that claim to be the answer with not a lot of luck. I was taking birth control pills for years but stopped taking them about 8 months ago or so because I thought they were causing some problems. I really hope that by switching the brand of my medication it will help with my acne.

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55

My doctor prescribed me levothyroxine and after a week or two of 25mcg I was breaking out worse than I EVER had in my life. The doctor insisted it wasn't the drug, but I had them write me a script for Synthroid (the non-generic) and it hasn't been an issue ever since. Now I'm on 100mcg and I occasionally breakout, but nothing out of the ordinary. If I use my proactiv everyday, my face stays almost 100% clear. If I could post a picture of my face while taking levothyroxine I would! It almost looked like a rash the pimples were so small and plentiful. My forehead looked awful and I had pimples around my mouth I've never had before. Try switching to Synthroid. It did wonders for me!

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54

To my post above. I'm on 50mcg, not 50mg. I am 59 years old, and this is ridiculous.

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53

I have been on 50mg Levothyroxine for about 9mo. I started noticing little bumps developing on my face (cheeks and forehead) about a month into taking the medication. At the same time, the facial cleanser I was using was discontinued and changed. I thought it was the cleanser that mine had been replaced with. It sounds like it's the medication. I'm tempted to half my dosage as an experiment to see if there is any change. Will be seeing my doctor in 2 weeks anyway.

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52

Hi folks, I am a doctor aged 36 on thyroxine treatment myself. I have noticed that within 2 weeks of starting thyroxine courses I develop facial acne. They subside once I stop the treatment. I did not have this problem when I was using the Eltroxin brand of thyroxine. I would advise trying to stagger the dose throughout the day or even lower the dose and the check your TFTs again after 3 weeks, and if that fails try to ask for a different brand name and see if that helps.

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51

I know this post is late but I always had clear skin my whole life UNTIL I went from 50mcg to 75mcg of my levothyroxine and its progressively worse with each dose increase. finally after breaking down and crying in my doctors office, he switched me to synthroid brand name only and in one week 75% of the acne is gone! im going back and he is going to give me an abx to kill the bacteria trapped under my skin, as i still have a few medium size painful cysts. But i wll never go generic again, ive been suffering for 6 months and spent Hundreds of dollars on acne treatments, washes, etc

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50

Yes, I have been taking it for 3 years and just last spring my dose was increased and I have had painful acne on my face around my mouth. I have gone in twice to ask my doctor and she said NO. I forget my meds on a week vacation and within 4 days the acne was gone until I came back within 3 days the acne was back....I am going to talk to my doctor again.

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49

I have also started the 125mcg of levothyroxine about 5 weeks ago and that was after taking the 137 mcg in june of this year, since my dose was lowered i have gotten a horrible case of acne that my doctor is saying has nothing to do with this medicine. It is the only medicine that i am currently taking so this must be the culprit. I am in my mid thirties and even as a teenager didn't get acne this bad.

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48

I have been taking Levothyroxine for almost 6 months and have been experiencing breakouts. I asked my doctor if it was associated with the medication she told me no. I've experienced groups of pimples what looks like a rash on my forehead and cheeks, but worst of all painful pimples under the skin above my mouth and on my chin. I don't want to have to take another medication to prevent the side effects of this medication....this is ridiculous! THANK YOU TO ALL WHO POST NOW I KNOW I'M NOT CRAZY AND THAT IT IS THE MEDICATION. I may have to tell my M.D. to review the response of everyone else's before she tells her patients its not a side effect. Also ask her to change my meds.

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47

From what my doctor told me, it is not the levothyroxine that causes the acne, but the filler in the medicine that makes the pill large enough to ingest. The medicine itself is so minute that the drug companies must add things to make the pill itself. I never had acne in my life, and as a 53-year old woman, I immediately developed it after taking this medication. It got so bad, it looked like a rash on my forehead and around my mouth, chin, and nose. I went off it and am taking Armour instead, and the acne disappeared completely (though I do have a few scars on my forehead). My advice - get off it now, and switch to Armour!

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