Anonymous wrote:Accutane may not be the answer. My DD did it three (!) times and got only temporary improvement (six months or so) each time.
Finally, we got her hormones tested with an OB/GYN--this was our initiative. The two different derms we went to did not suggest. Her testosterone was 104 (normal 15 to 70). She was diagnosed with PCOS but she apart from acne had no other symptoms (not overweight, etc.)
She went on spirolactone and that has brought the acne down to almost nothing.
Accutane can be very effective, but I wish someone had told me to check hormones first before embarking on three rounds of such a strong drug, which in the end did not work at all.
+1000, please pay attention to the totality of your DDs health. I had painful cystic acne, and I was not able to get it under control until I was diagnosed with PCOS and my treatment was geared toward that. I was thin with regular periods, and had no signs of PCOS other than the struggles with my skin. They didn’t link my skin issues up with PCOS until I was trying to get pregnant and couldn’t. I so wish for many reasons that someone had looked at it through a lens wider than just acne.