Last Resort - Accutaine or Laser?

Brighteyes · 30th October 2009, 04:41 PM

I'm at my wits' end here! In terms of last resort treatments, which is better, accutaine or laser? I've heard a lot of mixed reviews (success and horror stories) about each and need to know which is less likely to go bad. Ideally, I think doing laser first then accutaine would be best because you can't do laser while on accutaine but I don't want to mess things up further if accutaine will work fine on it's own. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance!

Stphn · 30th October 2009, 05:15 PM

Hey there, just my story, but hope it helps:

I went on accutane first, to clear P&P, waited a month or so, and then went and had laser treatment to remove redness and flushing. worked wonderfully. that was many years ago and i am again beginning to have some similar issues, particularly in the areas when i did not have laser treatment (neck, behind ears, forehead).

i plan on seeing what clearance i can achieve with another round of laser treatments and topicals/dietary changes before i look into accutane again.

many say that low-dose, long-term accutane has worked well for them, and with minimal side effects (5mg-10mg). As far as risks with lasers are concerned, it seems to depend on your reaction to the particular laser, as well as who is administering the treatment.

i suggest searching the IPL section of this forum for some tips on finding more info on both accutane and lasers.

Hope this helps,

Stphn

GJ · 30th October 2009, 05:42 PM

To a quite large extent that will depend on your symptoms. What troubles you most?

Yvette · 30th October 2009, 06:16 PM

Hi -

Do you have acne/pustules and have tried different topicals or medications without much success? If so, then I'd try low dose Accutane first before lasers. Reason being, when you start Accutane, it will push out all the acne and clogs you have underneath your skin. It will "purge" and clear your skin. Once the purging is done, then Accutane will further work wonders in trying to decrease your oil gland size/oil output and soften your skin.

I took low dose Accutane for nine months. Loved the results during and after. Low dose is key - 10mg a day for most works well. I was 10mg a day month one/two and then mostly 20mg a day for the remainder. This worked well for me. I had mild (but persistent acne) and mild Rosacea. I had Vbeam six months after finishing Accutane and then a series of IPL's. I prefer the results from IPL's.

If you have flushing only (without much acne, papules, pustules) I'd not recommend Accutane, but laser. Accutane will rid papules/pustules/acne and lessen the inflammation associated with it. It's mildly effective for base redness, but not prescribed or indicated for these symptoms.

Good luck!!

Yvette

Brighteyes · 30th October 2009, 06:46 PM

Thanks for the replies! My main problems are ocular, redness, and large pores. I'm currently taking 50mg doxy 2x/day, 10mg nadolol 1x/day and using a sulfer topical. The nadolol and sulfer topical seem to keep my flushing at bay and I don't really get acne - just redness. Also, I do not respond well to Metrogel or Finacea - they exacerbate my symptoms.

Yvette · 30th October 2009, 07:35 PM

Hi-

If your symptoms are mostly redness then, lasers would be your best bet. And same as you, my skin reacted badly to Finacea and Metrogel doesn't seem to do much except make my face red and feel like saran wrap. However, these topicals do work for some.

Good luck to you and please keep us updated.
Yvette