accutane

[jsmith]

Is it safe to take accutane at 6 weeks post op. I was on low dosages about a year ago. Then quit 6 months before my surgery. I get acne flare ups on and off and i want to get back on it. It is the only thing that clears my acne. I don't want to damage my grafts. They say hair loss is one of the side effects, but it never caused more hair loss. My only concern is I don't want to jeopardize the grafts.

[jsmith]

Is it safe to take accutane at 6 weeks post op. I was on low dosages about a year ago. Then quit 6 months before my surgery. I get acne flare ups on and off and i want to get back on it. It is the only thing that clears my acne. I don't want to damage my grafts. They say hair loss is one of the side effects, but it never caused more hair loss. My only concern is I don't want to jeopardize the grafts.

[Bill - Seemiller]

jsmith,

 

I don't know much about accutane personally, but I hear it's a pretty serious drug.

 

A similar quesiton was asked on the following thread that I believe is worth a read.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Jotronic]

Personally I would stay away from it until your grafts not only pop through but you are one year post-op. Accutane is a nasty medication. Of course, you need to speak with both your prescribing doctor and your hair transplant doctor or even get one to call the other so they can discuss it.

 

From Wikipedia:

 

Pharmacodynamics

 

Isotretinoin (Accutane) noticeably reduces the production of sebum and shrinks the sebaceous glands. It stabilizes keratinization and prevents comedones from forming. The exact mechanism of action is unknown, however it is known that like other retinoids, Isotretinoin works by altering DNA transcription. This effect decreases the size and output of sebaceous glands, makes the cells that are sloughed off into the sebaceous glands less sticky, and therefore less able to form comedones.

 

Adverse effects

 

Increasingly higher dosages will result in higher toxicity, resembling vitamin A toxicity. Adverse drug reactions associated with isotretinoin therapy include:[4]

 

* 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, myalgia and/or arthralgia.

* Infrequent: severe acne flare, raised blood glucose level, increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate, fatigue.

* Rare: impaired night vision, cataracts, optic neuritis, menstrual disturbances, inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, hepatitis, corneal opacities, papilloedema, idiopathic intracranial hypertension, skeletal hyperostosis, extraosseous calcification, and it is believed that severe depression can occur, although there is no conclusive evidence for this.

 

The following adverse effects have been reported to persist, even after discontinuing therapy: alopecia (hair loss), arthralgias, decreased night vision, degenerative disc disease, keloids, bone disease. High dosages of isotretinoin have been reported to cause rosacea (a disease of severe facial skin redness and irritation).

 

Erectile dysfunction in the form of difficulty in maintaining erection was reported in several patients in a clinical study. The impotence may have been caused by the psychiatric side effects of isotretinoin.[11]

 

While vitamin E supplements have been advocated by some to reduce the toxicity of high-dose retinoids without reducing drug efficacy, test results have proven this to be false.[12]

 

Patients receiving isotretinoin therapy are not permitted to donate blood during and for at least one month after discontinuation of isotretinoin therapy due to reported birth defects to unborn children.

[Bleachcola12]

I think you will be fine. I was on accutane at 80 mgs a day when i had my ht, and i was perfectly ok

[jsmith]

Thanks everybody for the replys

[chucky]

i read that posh spice washes her face with an aloe vera solution to clear up her acne outbreaks.she says it works but usually wears that much make up you cant tell

[Dr. Ricardo Mejia]

Accutane will not damage the grafts. As was posted by Jotronic, there are side effects. hair Loss is one of the side effects and does not occur in all patients. I have placed many patients on accutane before and have not had major complaints with hair loss. Do not be worried aboout your grafts.

Ricardo Mejia MD

Jupiter FL

561-748-0510

[jsmith]

thanks doc

[Jotronic]

It cannot be denied that Accutane is a powerful medication and there is an extensive amount of cases reported where hair loss is an issue. However this is not the primary reason for recommending against it's use.

 

We feel that it can cause a much higher possibility for unacceptable scarring after a procedure.

 

Officially, we will not take on a patient that has been on Accutane within six months of their desired surgical date at a minimum and prefer up to nine months of being off of Accutane before surgery.

[jsmith]

thanks for the reply jotronic

[Dr. Ricardo Mejia]

I agree with Jotronic and Dr. Hasson and Wong. We prefer not to have a patient on Accutane for a minimum of 6 months. The fear stems primarily from patients who received laser resurfacing for acne scars and developed worse complications. COnsequently, the general recommendation has been to avoid surgery on Accutane patients for 6 months to one year after accutane for any resurfacing procedure. This has been carried over to surgery in general. I do not believe there are any reported case report comlications in the literature after hair transplantation has been done. Accutane affects the sebaceous glands which are also in hair follicles and remains in your system for approximately one month. I have had a motivated patient start accutane after 2 months of their hair transplantation and they did fine. However, This is an uncertain and unknown risk after hair transplantation surgery.

 

Jotronic: When does your clinic recommend starting the accutane after the hair transplantation?

[Jotronic]

Jotronic: When does your clinic recommend starting the accutane after the hair transplantation?

 

 

We recommend the patient waits six months at a minimum to start back on Accutane. By then the majority of the scarring has formed and healed so the risks are significantly lessened.

[JM]

I have been on two courses of accutane. You should not have any type of plastic surgery ( I think HT's should fall into that category) for at least six months before or after.

[Balboa]

very intresting post but Jotronic im guessing your issues are in regards to strip procedure as i know accutane has side effects in healing, and the strip will leave a very big scar, so is this the main reason for this, what about acutane and FUE,? thanks

[Dr. William Lindsey]

I wouldn't knowingly operate on an accutane patient for at least 6 months, and for face procedures, I wait a year or more.

 

The halls of medicine and in particular laser resurfacing are filled with disfiguring scarring in patients treated soon after accutane.

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

[Balboa]

i stopped (finished the corse) accutane for 6 months before my fue procedure its now 4.25 months post opp but still got some small bumps and very small amount of redness left on recipiant site, when is it ok to take accutane again im only going to go on 10mg this time as its mild acne, before i was on 40mg and i have dry lips and dry skin but nothing major as far as side affects thanks

[Jotronic]

If it were me I'd ride it out till the final result before starting back but in your case you really should contact your clinic to get the scoop. Always follow the post-op instructions of your particular clinic to a T. It may or may not be the same as other clinics but for optimal follow-up care it is best to stay within their guidelines.

[chewy.foo]

On 11/16/2007 at 4:36 AM, Bleachcola12 said:

I think you will be fine. I was on accutane at 80 mgs a day when i had my ht, and i was perfectly ok

I’m a lil freaked out just had a hair transplant on accutane, you had no issues?