Dr. gave me antibiotics for my acne (Chest/Back)..

[SwoleinKR]

So I never really had a problem with acne on my body (except for my second cycle ever Dbol/Deca but that was when I was 20, so I'm pretty sure puberty had something to do with it). I'm 30 now and just recently develeoped some serious acne on my back, chest and shoulders. The doctor gave me some doxycycline (sp?) and I was wondering if anyone else has tried using antibiotics for their acne caused by AS. Obviously I didn't tell him I was on anything, I just told him that it just "happened". I will say this...until a few weeks ago, I was carrying a lot more bodyfat than I ever have in my entire life and it (the acne) was the worse then. I've since been dieting and at about 17% and it is getting better but not gone. Any input would be appreciated!!

 

[617ricky]

You may have good luck, but antibiotics are really only a small step up from OTC treatments.. If the acne really is that serious, I'd seriously fight it with the best shit out there - accutane.. Antibiotics are treating 1 of the causes (bacteria), but with serious acne you're definitely gonna have better luck fighting the main cause (excessive sebum production).. It's like, you can try and minimize the bacteria, but if the excess sebum is still there, they still have their food.. If you eliminate the sebum tho, you're taking away their livelihood which is the root cause.. Plus the success rate with accutane is pretty much 100%, while not everyone will respond well to the antibiotics.. I guess just take it a day at a time, and see where you're at in a few wks.. If it continues to get worse, accutane is the way to go.. If you're on cycle, another contributing cause may be high estrogen levels, which is also something you could take care of with something like aromasin.

 

[sodzl]

I had a dermatologist prescribe the same thing Doryx (sp) and a special lotion for bacne. I was told to take it for 30 days and it would clear up. After 30 days absolutely no change in acne at all, at the time I had been of two months. I found an overseas website that sold a 90 day supply for less than my co pay. I tried again for almost two monts with no change.

 

[h8tr3d]

ive tried doxy before with no positive results. Ive also tried nizoral 2% shampoo with minimal results. I finally got some accutane, and im 85% cleared up right now, with no new acne forming. Its the way to go

 

[triathloncoach]

Doxy - eh

With me, it's my estrogen levels. I've used a ton of doxy - did nothing. I may go to accutane myself, but I'd first make certain your Est is not out of control.

My acne is worse when I'm coming off a cycle.

 

[jm425]

So I never really had a problem with acne on my body (except for my second cycle ever Dbol/Deca but that was when I was 20, so I'm pretty sure puberty had something to do with it). I'm 30 now and just recently develeoped some serious acne on my back, chest and shoulders. The doctor gave me some doxycycline (sp?) and I was wondering if anyone else has tried using antibiotics for their acne caused by AS. Obviously I didn't tell him I was on anything, I just told him that it just "happened". I will say this...until a few weeks ago, I was carrying a lot more bodyfat than I ever have in my entire life and it (the acne) was the worse then. I've since been dieting and at about 17% and it is getting better but not gone. Any input would be appreciated!!

I have a friend that was prescribed doxy from his derm. It takes a few weeks for the acne to start slowing disappearing. His skin was clear in about a month. Remember, it takes awhile with antibiotics and acne.

 

[jm425]

You may have good luck, but antibiotics are really only a small step up from OTC treatments.. If the acne really is that serious, I'd seriously fight it with the best shit out there - accutane.. Antibiotics are treating 1 of the causes (bacteria), but with serious acne you're definitely gonna have better luck fighting the main cause (excessive sebum production).. It's like, you can try and minimize the bacteria, but if the excess sebum is still there, they still have their food.. If you eliminate the sebum tho, you're taking away their livelihood which is the root cause.. Plus the success rate with accutane is pretty much 100%, while not everyone will respond well to the antibiotics.. I guess just take it a day at a time, and see where you're at in a few wks.. If it continues to get worse, accutane is the way to go.. If you're on cycle, another contributing cause may be high estrogen levels, which is also something you could take care of with something like aromasin.

Taking accutane is jumping the gun. If antibiotics work for him then he should go that route. There is no need to get on accutane if the doxy works because accutane has many sides. It says a lot when a derm has to get blood work from you in order to see if your healthy enough to take accutane. With that being said, IMO, accutane should be the very last step to acne treatment when nothing else is working.

 

[sam1976]

Taking accutane is jumping the gun. If antibiotics work for him then he should go that route. There is no need to get on accutane if the doxy works because accutane has many sides. It says a lot when a derm has to get blood work from you in order to see if your healthy enough to take accutane. With that being said, IMO, accutane should be the very last step to acne treatment when nothing else is working.

i agree. if you can use something less, go for it. i found that retin-a works very well for me. becasue it is a topical retinoid, it is a lot less harsh on your body. i've also used accutane and it had a similar effect, but the retin-a only worked where i applied it, instead of drying everything out, like accutane di to my nostrils, ears, lips and joints.

 

[jm425]

i agree. if you can use something less, go for it. i found that retin-a works very well for me. becasue it is a topical retinoid, it is a lot less harsh on your body. i've also used accutane and it had a similar effect, but the retin-a only worked where i applied it, instead of drying everything out, like accutane di to my nostrils, ears, lips and joints.

Damn bro. I was prescribed retin-a and benza-clin years ago. Unfortunately they didn't do jack for my acne.

 

[sam1976]

Damn bro. I was prescribed retin-a and benza-clin years ago. Unfortunately they didn't do jack for my acne.

lol, and anti-b's never did jack for me. medicine is a funny thing. but yea, i'd swear by retin-a...i had the strong stuff. for awhile, i had the lower dose version, and it didn't do much of anything, but then they boosted me up to (can't remember the %) but it was wicked. first, my skin turned red, was dry and itchy. then it started to peel. after about a month, it was awesome. it even helped with scarring. retinoids increase the rate at which skin cells turn over, so you have new skin faster.

 

[617ricky]

Taking accutane is jumping the gun. If antibiotics work for him then he should go that route. There is no need to get on accutane if the doxy works because accutane has many sides.

That's why I said:

"I guess just take it a day at a time, and see where you're at in a few wks.. If it continues to get worse, accutane is the way to go.."

I'm just giving the reality here of the overall average effectiveness of antiobiotics vs. accutane.. He says he has "serious acne", and while that description will vary in how serious it really is from person to person, if it's REALLY serious, I would not waste any time jumping on the strongest stuff out there, cuz waiting could mean it just gets worse, leaving serious marks and scarring..

And I'm just curious, have you ever taken accutane personally, or just read about these "many sides"? I've taken it twice - once a high dose prescribed by a Dr, and again on a low lose administered myself.. Both times the sides were MINIMAL - just dry skin and chapped lips - that's it.. The sides of accutane are SO exaggerated by the media, cuz of the suicides years ago, but that's another piece of bullshit altogether, seeing as the suicide rate of accutane users was no higher than the national suicide average..

Low dose accutane is the way to go, because the sides are so minimal, and it works better than anything else by far..

 

[patricio2626]

Bactrim is supposed to help, as well. I was prescribed it for a strange patch of cellulitis, so I've never used it for acne, but anyways... also, finasteride is supposed to reduce sebum production (stops reduction of Test -> DHT).

 

[jm425]

That's why I said:

"I guess just take it a day at a time, and see where you're at in a few wks.. If it continues to get worse, accutane is the way to go.."

I'm just giving the reality here of the overall average effectiveness of antiobiotics vs. accutane.. He says he has "serious acne", and while that description will vary in how serious it really is from person to person, if it's REALLY serious, I would not waste any time jumping on the strongest stuff out there, cuz waiting could mean it just gets worse, leaving serious marks and scarring..

And I'm just curious, have you ever taken accutane personally, or just read about these "many sides"? I've taken it twice - once a high dose prescribed by a Dr, and again on a low lose administered myself.. Both times the sides were MINIMAL - just dry skin and chapped lips - that's it.. The sides of accutane are SO exaggerated by the media, cuz of the suicides years ago, but that's another piece of bullshit altogether, seeing as the suicide rate of accutane users was no higher than the national suicide average..

Low dose accutane is the way to go, because the sides are so minimal, and it works better than anything else by far..

How were your liver values?

 

[jm425]

Bactrim is supposed to help, as well. I was prescribed it for a strange patch of cellulitis, so I've never used it for acne, but anyways... also, finasteride is supposed to reduce sebum production (stops reduction of Test -> DHT).

I have heard that as well. However, one of bactrim's side effects is depression. Now, not everyone experiences this, but I sure as hell did. When I was taking it for an infection under doctor's orders I was depressed so I had to come off of it.

 

[617ricky]

How were your liver values?

They were totally fine on the Dr. prescribed 80mg/day, so I can be nearly positive they were still fine on the 20mg/day.. Like alot of prescription drugs, I feel that accutane is over-prescribed when it comes to the dosage.. Doctors will be quick to put you on 60-120mg, but there's been studies done that much smaller doses can be just as effective - like 10-20mg.. And in that low range, you can have results that are just as good, with the so-called side effects being minimized to an even further extent..

And if you use the drug smart, you don't even have to stay on it long.. Me for example, I know I'm prone to breakouts on cycle.. So I had been using Retin-A gel which is excellent in it's own right.. In addition to being great for acne, I think it's the only thing out there that's scientifically proven to reduce the appearance and formation of wrinkles.. But for my cycle, I wanted to be sure I was gonna stay clear.. So I ran the low-dose accutane for not even a month before I started the cycle, then stopped, and I still haven't gotten a single zit.. Had I not taken these precautions, I can assure you that wouldn't be the case.. Then if I do happen to get some zits, I can just start the accutane back up.. But by using the drug in a smart, planned out, conservative fashion, you can get great results and not have to worry about sides..

 

[jm425]

They were totally fine on the Dr. prescribed 80mg/day, so I can be nearly positive they were still fine on the 20mg/day.. Like alot of prescription drugs, I feel that accutane is over-prescribed when it comes to the dosage.. Doctors will be quick to put you on 60-120mg, but there's been studies done that much smaller doses can be just as effective - like 10-20mg.. And in that low range, you can have results that are just as good, with the so-called side effects being minimized to an even further extent..

And if you use the drug smart, you don't even have to stay on it long.. Me for example, I know I'm prone to breakouts on cycle.. So I had been using Retin-A gel which is excellent in it's own right.. In addition to being great for acne, I think it's the only thing out there that's scientifically proven to reduce the appearance and formation of wrinkles.. But for my cycle, I wanted to be sure I was gonna stay clear.. So I ran the low-dose accutane for not even a month before I started the cycle, then stopped, and I still haven't gotten a single zit.. Had I not taken these precautions, I can assure you that wouldn't be the case.. Then if I do happen to get some zits, I can just start the accutane back up.. But by using the drug in a smart, planned out, conservative fashion, you can get great results and not have to worry about sides..

Interesting. What I don't understand about accutane is how people report that even after taking it, they're acne doesn't show up in the future.

 

[617ricky]

Interesting. What I don't understand about accutane is how people report that even after taking it, they're acne doesn't show up in the future.

If you do the full length treatment which is like 4-6 months, then the acne should not come back for a typical person.. But if you start doing gear again after, putting your hormones/androgens way back up, then the chances that it will return go right back up.. It may not come back for everyone if they juice, but if you're really susceptible to acne and do gear again after accutane, then you're just starting the cycle all over again since you're putting the building blocks back in place for acne to thrive, which is the high hormone/androgen levels..

 

[Newman]

They were totally fine on the Dr. prescribed 80mg/day, so I can be nearly positive they were still fine on the 20mg/day.. Like alot of prescription drugs, I feel that accutane is over-prescribed when it comes to the dosage.. Doctors will be quick to put you on 60-120mg, but there's been studies done that much smaller doses can be just as effective - like 10-20mg.. And in that low range, you can have results that are just as good, with the so-called side effects being minimized to an even further extent..

And if you use the drug smart, you don't even have to stay on it long.. Me for example, I know I'm prone to breakouts on cycle.. So I had been using Retin-A gel which is excellent in it's own right.. In addition to being great for acne, I think it's the only thing out there that's scientifically proven to reduce the appearance and formation of wrinkles.. But for my cycle, I wanted to be sure I was gonna stay clear.. So I ran the low-dose accutane for not even a month before I started the cycle, then stopped, and I still haven't gotten a single zit.. Had I not taken these precautions, I can assure you that wouldn't be the case.. Then if I do happen to get some zits, I can just start the accutane back up.. But by using the drug in a smart, planned out, conservative fashion, you can get great results and not have to worry about sides..

The low dose approach had crossed my mind too.

When I was in my teens, I had some bad zits here & there, but I wasn't too bad overall. There was this friend of mine who was total pizza face & he eventually tried accutane.

We went seperate ways before I could see the final results, but I do remember that he had seriously dry skin from the accutane. He had to keep using hand cream & lip balm all the time or he'd split right open.

I wonder if low dose accutane & low to moderate dose antibiotics with moderate to high dose retin A would be a potent multi-prong approach with less intense sides than a higher dosed single med therapy?

They might be synergistic assuming there were no bad interactions.

 

[617ricky]

I wonder if low dose accutane & low to moderate dose antibiotics with moderate to high dose retin A would be a potent multi-prong approach with less intense sides than a higher dosed single med therapy?

I've read about that, and most antibiotics should not be used with accutane.. You can use Bactrim with it tho, however.. I used the Retin-A by itself for 4-5 months, and got great results with that alone.. Face was totally clear and smoother then it had ever been.. Then I started up 20mg accutane for a month, and the chapped lips and drier skin started quickly.. Medicated chapstick a few times a day had that taken care of perfectly.. And if someone is getting really dry skin on their face, there are better things than hand cream, lol.. They have more expensive moisturizers that come in a little circular jar, and they have more of a vaseline type texture, compared to other creams.. And using something like twice a day is enough to keep your skin totally fine, even on accutane..

If you kno you're prone to acne and decide to do gear, the best thing you can possibly do is plan ahead, and start low-dose accutane before you start your cycle.. It will literally prevent anything from starting, instead of waiting for it to hit and get bad, then waiting for your treatment to kick in, while the acne may get worse..

I was thinking about running the Retin-A in addition to the low dose accutane - but accutane is really that effective IMO, that it's the only thing you need.. But again, it's so much better to plan out ahead and take care of something like this before it starts..

 

[Newman]

I've read about that, and most antibiotics should not be used with accutane.. You can use Bactrim with it tho, however.. I used the Retin-A by itself for 4-5 months, and got great results with that alone.. Face was totally clear and smoother then it had ever been.. Then I started up 20mg accutane for a month, and the chapped lips and drier skin started quickly.. Medicated chapstick a few times a day had that taken care of perfectly.. And if someone is getting really dry skin on their face, there are better things than hand cream, lol.. They have more expensive moisturizers that come in a little circular jar, and they have more of a vaseline type texture, compared to other creams.. And using something like twice a day is enough to keep your skin totally fine, even on accutane..

Good info, Rick. So, Bactrim, RetinA & Accutane in low doses may be an interesting therapy to test out. Hopefully a synergistic effect would enable effectiveness at doses low enough to avoid significant sides.



If you kno you're prone to acne and decide to do gear, the best thing you can possibly do is plan ahead, and start low-dose accutane before you start your cycle.. It will literally prevent anything from starting, instead of waiting for it to hit and get bad, then waiting for your treatment to kick in, while the acne may get worse..

Similarly, I think that starting HCG therapy a few days prior to starting a cycle would be a good preventive measure, rather than reacting after the fact.



I was thinking about running the Retin-A in addition to the low dose accutane - but accutane is really that effective IMO, that it's the only thing you need.. But again, it's so much better to plan out ahead and take care of something like this before it starts...

From what I've read, Accutane in like artillery. Since our bloodstream is the battlefield, using the lowest effective dosage is preferred.

I can't argue against the effectiveness of Accutane, but finding a synergistic combination of meds that allow for effectiveness at low doses would be nice.

.