What You Should Know Before Taking Accutane

Accutane is a prescription drug for the treatment of very severe infections of acne and is usually
resorted to as a last medicinal resort for the treatment of the dreaded skin condition. The kinds
of acne that are generally treated with accutane are cystic acne known also as nodular acne.

Understanding The Cause Of Acne

Sometimes, in certain conditions excessive oils are secreted by the glands in the skin and these
oils lodge in the hair follicles in the skin and clog the pores of the skin where the hair grown out
of. This leads to inflammation of the follicle and the surrounding tissue that result in pimples,
which may grow into cystic nodules filled with pus that is tender to the touch. Sometimes the
treatment of these cysts requires a physician to drain them of the accumulated pus cells.

Cystic acne is known to last for months even a few years as it is one of the more severe kinds of
acne. It is only when the treatment resorted to fails to produce results that doctors resort to the
use of accutane as a treatment for cystic or persistent acne. The doctor must, however educate
the patient on the side effects of the use of accutane while treating acne. Sometimes a
physician will ask a patient to sign a form stating that you understand the side effects of the use
of the drug and that you consent to the treatment.

Perhaps the most outstanding side effect of the use of accutane is the birth defects that can
possibly occur in the fetus of a pregnant woman taking the drug. Accutane may even be the
cause of a miscarriage during pregnancy. Still born babies are common when a pregnant
woman resorts to accutane as a treatment for acne. So, if you are pregnant NEVER take
accutane as a treatment. If you are not pregnant, doctors require you to undergo a pregnancy
test every month if he is treating you for acne with accutane.

Patients of acne being treated with accutane have been known to develop suicidal tendencies
as well. The symptoms include:

1. Mood swings
2. Anxiety
3. Depression
4. Irritability
5. Becoming a recluse
6. Loss of sleep or Excessive sleep
7. Weight loss or gain
8. Loss of appetite or gain of it.

And these are just some of the effects of the use of Accutane. Then is it really beneficial to use
accutane at all? You decide.

Accutane must be resorted to as a last resort for acne treatment. Because acne and acne
scarring can be a very heavy burden for people to carry due to the loss of social activity and
psychological stress associated with the disorder and when nothing else seems to work it may
be the last choice for the physician but let it be the last choice of the physician.