accutane and hair loss

[Bruno]

Hi, i was just reading on hairsite about the GHO Clinic and i read that accutane can cause hairloss. Is this true?

 

Also, can you give your comments on his hair multiplication-technique. His is telling that it ll be available in about 2 years. Will this mean the end for our problem or do you have any doubts?

[Bruno]

Hi, i was just reading on hairsite about the GHO Clinic and i read that accutane can cause hairloss. Is this true?

 

Also, can you give your comments on his hair multiplication-technique. His is telling that it ll be available in about 2 years. Will this mean the end for our problem or do you have any doubts?

[el guapo]

Dr Gho has promised to deliver HP on several occasions. Every time he pushes it forward a couple of years. It is possible that it will be available soon but not necessarily from him.

it would solve the biggest problem of them all; supply.

I would guess this technique will initially be expensive and should only be used by those with very limited donor hair supply.

 

El Guapo

[vocor1]

one of the possible side effects of accutane IS hairloss.

 

it shouldn't be too big of a surprise. And it doesn't happen to everyone.

 

Accutane STOPS your skin's natural oil production. That is a pretty drastic measure which is why accutane should only be used for severe acne cases where possible hairloss (honestly) would be preferred over permanent scarring and disfigurement from severe cystic acne.

 

vocor1

Knowledge is Power

-- If the worst question is the one never asked, then the worst answer is the one never shared.

-- The truth only matters if you know about it.

[Bruno]

i actually have very little acne-problems. I went to my dermatologist, i maybe had 2 small pimples and she gave me accutane. So should i stop it?

[arfy]

Well, you should definitely talk to your dermatologist if you are concerned about hair loss (dermatologistas specialize in skin and hair).

 

Accutane is pretty strong stuff, and you shouldn't take it unless you really need it, because of a serious case of acne or if you have cystic acne.

 

Really, you need to hash these issues out with your doc, but yes Accutane can cause hair loss. You need to discuss whether or not Accutane is worth the potential negatives, depending on your situation.

[vocor1]

Bruno:

 

The sort of stuff you wrote pisses me off.

 

Your doctor is either stupid, negligent, or both.

 

Accutane STOPS sebum production in your body. It is a Vitamin A derivative that CAN cause liver dysfuction, kidney dysfunction, SEVERE depression, and very dry, flaky skin. And yes, hairloss.

 

It should not be taken unless your acnes is quite severe and minocycline, tetracycline, and topical Retin-A have failed.

 

I know all this because my skin used to break out quite severely, but sporadically. And I built up an "immunity" to the other drugs. My doc really, REALLY began to push Accutaine on me. I think the drug manufacturer gives docs a MAJOR kickback on writing scripts. Accutaine is about $100 a month, but health insurances will almost always pay for it.

 

I decided against Accutaine. But even though my doc pushed it pretty hard, they did say I would have to sign consent forms and they would do blood tests on me bi-weekly if I got on it.

 

So, it is not a "casual" drug. It requires close monitoring and great need.

 

I had a friend who also had Accutaine "casually" prescribed to him. He alerted me to the pitfalls of Accutaine (which he fortunately did not experience), so I was very careful when my decision came around.

 

I don't want to panic you. You may have no side effects. Most don't, I believe. But taking Accutaine because of a couple of zits is not a good risk-to-reward in any circumstance.

 

vocor1

Knowledge is Power

-- If the worst question is the one never asked, then the worst answer is the one never shared.

-- The truth only matters if you know about it.

[arfy]

I did a cycle of Accutane a few years ago, and it is pretty strong stuff. (It's also expensive.) As Vocor said, it is not a thing to use casually.

 

I think I was on it for about 4 or 5 months... For about 2 years after my treament I had to use lip balm regularly throughout the day. It severely dries out your skin. It gave me some mood swings (supposedly it can make some young people even feel suicidal).

 

Think about shutting down the production of sebum and oil in your body, and how that could have a big impact on your scalp and hair. If you have the predisposition for hair loss, Accutane can trigger it, or make it begin sooner, or make your hair loss more severe, in my opinion.

[vocor1]

Arfy:

 

Those are good points on Accutaine.

 

People have committed suicide on Accutaine. Severe depression happens too. The suicide rate is a non-trivial 1%, I've read. I too read that the suicides were mainly in teens. What a shame to takes one's life over acne.

 

The lip balm thing is a VERY common side effect that I forgot about. Dry lips is pretty common.

 

And to others: think it is no big deal? Think again. It's not like depression, but it is no picnic to have your lip splitting constantly if you smile big, yawn, or whatever with out a good lip balm. It sucks big time -- and I've dealt with that, but not from Accutaine use.

 

Just a heads up to keep up the info flow.

 

vocor1

Knowledge is Power

-- If the worst question is the one never asked, then the worst answer is the one never shared.

-- The truth only matters if you know about it.

[bfranci]

Hey, not to freak anybody out, but when I was 15 I went on Accutane and I started losing my hair pretty much right after that. The hair loss has continued up until this day (I'm 26 now). Propecia has stopped its progress so far. I'm curious as to whether or not I would have started losing my hair at that age anyways (although it seems awfully young).

 

Just a word to the wise. Unless you're really deformed by acne, it might be better to rough it out. I kinda wish I had.