Accutane and hair loss

I took Accutane in the fall of 2004 and I experienced severe hair loss. (I'm a girl). My hair came out in handfulls for about 6 months. The large amount of hair that usually falls out after washing or brushing hair was falling out every half an hour if i ran my fingers through my hair. I lost about 60% of my hair. It stopped for a few months and started again for a few months to a lesser degree though. And now, 3.5 years later, it stills falls out more frequently than it should. It doesn't come out in handfulls everyday, but it does fall out more than any normal person would shed hair. Thankfully I had a very thick head of hair so it is not noticeable to people that didn't know me before. But it is noticable to me, and it hasn't begun to grow back yet. I don't know if it will ever be like it used to be. I've heard it can take years to begin to grow back, and I've also heard that hair loss due to Accutane can be permanent. Personally, I don't think that Accutane was worth it. My relief from acne was only temporary. I started using a topical cream about 2 years ago and that has worked wonders for me. I regret using Accutane because the hair loss for me has been emotionally hard to deal with and quite devestating.


This discussion is related to Accutane/ Hair Loss.

[saranonty]

Could I ask you what topical cream you are using? I have mild- bad acne but I have to admit I didn't like the sound of the side- effects of Accutane.
Thanks

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

Adverse drug reactions associated with isotretinoin therapy include:[5]

Common: Mild acne flare, dryness of skin, lips and mucous membranes, infection of the cuticles, cheilitis, itch, skin fragility, skin peeling, rash, flushing, photosensitivity, nose bleeds, dry eyes, eye irritation, conjunctivitis, reduced tolerance to contact lenses, hyperlipidaemia, raised liver enzymes, headaches, hair thinning (This could start or continue after treatment), myalgia and/or arthralgia, back pain.

Let us know if you need any further information.

It would be advisable to consult a skin specialist for your symptoms and a proper clinical examination.

Let us know if you need any other information and post us on how you are doing.

Regards.

[nickelbite]

I'm a guy, 20 years old, and took accutane back in 2008 for only 3 months. Stopped early because of thinning hair in mass amounts.
Doctors and dermatologists don't want to attribute accutane as the cause to something like this because quite frankly, the accutane doesn't often do its damage in massive amounts as quickly to really show a "drastic difference" or whatever. They probably also want to keep the opinion of accutane a "good" one, since it technically does help with acne. It DID help with mine, but like a bajillion other people, my acne came back soon after going off of it. Nowadays I just take minocycline every other day, eat healthier, and tan every once in a while and my skin is pretty well clear (fairly anyway).
ANYWAYS..
My hair has slowly been thinning since the whole accutane treatment ordeal, and it's very upsetting. My dad and his father both had good hairlines well into their adult years, but mine is definitely already accelerated by the drug.
But I'm not too worried, because I know what my plan of attack for it is going to be. I'm going to go see a man nearby who specializes in "Acupuncture".
My goals are to 1) Have him perform something called "Cupping" to stop the thinning of the hair and 2) Treat me for hair-loss / alopecia with his acupuncture magic.
I have undergone acupuncture for my back (scoliosis) before, and it's amazing. Not painful at all, and almost feels like taking a pain-killer once you wake up, so you feel pretty good haha.

Of course, there isn't going to be a lot of love for acupuncture on the internet if you try and look this up. It's not "tested" by enough people or whatever. My personal opinion is that western medicine and "dermatologists" just don't want acupuncturists stealing their patients and therefore, their money. It's just sad that docs will let us take such hardcore medications rather than trying to be thoughtful about what it could really do to us in the long run.

I'm not trying to advertise for a specific acupuncturist office or anything, I just thought it'd be nice to share my strategy for this. It's not going to be cheap, but I damn well think it's worth a shot. :-)
Good day everybody.