Accutane Side Effects - Is It Safe To Use?

Accutane is a medicinal drug mainly prescribed to alleviate severe acne. It was first created as a pancreatic cancer and brain cancer chemotherapy medicine; it was resulted to have the increased benefit of removing difficult cases of acne, especially those likely to leave disfiguring and permanent scarring.

Categorized as a retinoid, Accutane is related to vitamin A – a substance which is naturally present in the body.

Accutane is fundamentally prescribed in treating and managing acne. However, this drug possesses high incidence of side effects which only proves that Accutane should only be used if creams and topical creams for treating acne do not work well with patients. This being said, Accutane may be given to help cure severe forms of acne such as acne fulminans, acne vulgaris, and acne conglobata.

While Accutane can be given to cure severe types of acne, this medicine is most often given to treat recalcitrant nodular acne – a form of acne that does not respond to other types of treatment. Hence, paves the way for Accutane as the final choice for individuals who want to have clearer skin.

Since Accutane is a retinoid, it lessens the accumulated sebum in the skin which clogs pores (oil and dead skin cells combined) and dries oil. Accutane also works to diminish the size of sebaceous glands, eliminating acne and hinders new blemishes to establish further.

By keeping a “dry” area on the skin, fresh acne bacteria are unlikely to show and form into cysts, nodules, or pimples.

Accutane is also given to patients to treat other types of cancers, such as pancreatic cancer and brain cancer. It is used as a chemotherapy medicine and works by aiming at cells that separate rapidly. Unfortunately, Accutane generally works inside the body and can terminate non-cancerous cells.

Accutane Side Effects

While Accutane has been known to work well in healing cancers and skin conditions, it does have serious side effects. Some of these may continue even after medication has ended.

Listed below are the side effects brought by Accutane:

• Brittle nails
• Muscle pain
• Acne flare-ups
• Eczema
• Birth defects
• Menstrual irregularities or heavy flow
• Hair thinning
• Fatigue
• Liver damage associated with symptoms of weight loss, jaundice, and nausea
• Severe dry skin on the genitals, lips, eyes, and nostrils
• Skin infections and conditions
• Increased sensitivity to sunlight
• Health problems, and allergic reaction to isotretinoin causing liver disease
• Severe depression

An individual who has been diagnosed for depression (or has a family member or so suffering from depression) should not use Accutane as this medicine can only worsen the condition.