My son is using Accutane while on Minocin

[Martha]

Dear doctor R. For about a year now my son has taken minocin to control his acne. It worked pretty good except that about two months ago, the acne returned less severe, which then his dermatologist swtiched him on to accutane. Since he did not want to be taken off the antibiotic, he decided to take them together behind my back. He started at 20mg a day for two weeks and continues at 20mg a day. About three days ago he started complaining about his head hurting him a "BIT" from time to time. I thought it was the accutane, but when i saw prescription bottles of Minocin still in his room i remembered reading something with him that these two drugs used to together causes something called Pseudoumor hypertension..or something like that. Anyways im extremely worried about him but when i ask him to stop taking minocin he tells me that he is afraid that the acne will return even more severely. Right now he barely has any acne at all, even his back is clearing up. Im worried that he may have permanently damaged his body and dont know what to do. He would die if he would have to stop using accutane and im sure he wouldnt listen to me. Could he stop using just the minocin and continue with the accutane or would he have to stop both. Please doctor i dont know what to do.

Regards,
Martha

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Martha:

The first thing to do is stop worrying!

Your son has not damaged himself.  I have never seen pseudotumor from either drug.  Mild headache is not a symptom of that, in any case.

At this point he doesn't need the Minocin anyway.  I would discuss with his doctor stopping that, and finishing off the Accutane.

Your son will be fine.

Best wishes.

Dr. R

[Joanne]

I'm am worried about my son taking antibiotics or accutane for his acne.  Is long-term use of antibiotics/accutane bad for the immune system?  Why do they warn women not to take accutane if they are or may become pregnant?  What excatly is accutane?

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Accutane is a derivative of Vitamin A.  It causes birth defects only if women take it while theyb are pregnant.  It has no effect on the immune system, and does not stay in the body after you're done with it.

Dr. R

[lily]

Dear Dr. R.  I have had acne since I was 16 years old.  I am now 29 years old.  I have a few acne scars and blemishes and I am afraid that i will get more.  My face is very oily.  I have tried almost everything on the market and visited two demotologis who prescibed a variety of gels and cleaners.  I also had a chemical peel and was on birth control.  Nothing really controled the oil or prevented the breakouts from reoccuring.  Every week I get a couple of red pimples on face and they feel very hard, like a little ball in my face.  All year around I get white heads on my face that makes my face look bumpy.  People say that my face does not look as bad as I think it is.  I really wish I had a clear complexion....

I am really terrified of taking Accutane.  I am afraid that the side effects would be permanent.  I already have dry skin on the rest of my body.  I can't imagine how dry it would be during and after the accutane treatment.  Will my skin continue to be dry after treatment and will accutane cause me to age quicker (wrinkle)?

[[e-mail]]

I finished Accutane 5 months ago.  I have not had any acne, but I have been taking ortho-tricyclen.  Is it necessary to be on something that takes care of minor acne after taking accutane or can I stop taking the BCP?  I am also using Differin, so will that be sufficient?
-Laura

[diem]

Hi there,
I would like to know which precription medication for acne is more effective?  Accutance? or Minocin?  I have taken Accutance for 5 months, but my acne still didn't go away, so I stop.  My friend told me that Minocin is a good medicine for acne.  What do you think?  Can you tell me, please.

DA