My son is 15 and is being put on accutane for his acne, any advice?

hello, yes, there a things he can do to treat his back. If this is the only solution the dermatologist suggest, at least consider another dermatologists opinion and care. He is going to have to keep his back really clean, with whatever he is using to clean his face, keep his hair off of his back, if it is long. Believe it or not, the extra oil he is producing due to going through puberty, can get on the back and thqt is coming from his hair. Please have him shampoo his hair a few times a week with PRELL shampoo, it really gets tht oils off the hair, because as your son sweats, the oil and sweat qre getting on his back making the back acne worse. Antibiotics kills the germs in the bumps, HR probably needs a good cleanser for his face and back, they do have some rx cleansers, a medicated skin scrub and possibly a peeling agent that will help.

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I don't think they make this any more, but years ago, they had me use a scrub called Pernox, it as over the counter, and desquamex peeling agent, and I saw a dermatologist often for some uv lamp treatments and they somehow used a tool to push the big cysts that seemed to be forming, and kept them from getting big. Tell him to keep his hands off his face and back too, as it spreads germs to the skin. I applaud you for listening to that hunch and doing the research, believe me, a better dermatologist is what he needs, not this poison called accutane. Patti

Dont put your child on accutane unless he has cystic scarring acne so bad and you have tried everything else! I had two cousins who commited suicide at age 17 while on accutane back in the late 70's to early 80's and they now know that accutane is linked to teen suicide. That stuff is not good unless it is just a last ditch effort and even then I would think twice! My son uses Doryx (which is the doxycycline abx) and clindimycin/benzoyl peroxide topical (Acanya) and he uses Atralin (trentinoin) which is the peeling agent-oh and he uses a sulfer wash called Sumadan. My son takes growth hormone and his face has just exploded from the hormones!! We pretty much have it under control with this treatment though.

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All kids are different but refuse the accutane! Tell the dermatologist you want to go a different route and if he cant help you then find someone else! Anything that requires two forms of birth control in both male and females who are sexually active, cant be a good thing to put in ones body!! If it can change the chromosomes on the sex cells that much, what else is it changing? I just dont like the stuff and I flat out told my dermatologist that no child of mine would ever take it! She was ok with it though and respected my opinion. I know, too, that not everyone gets horrible side effects but why take the chance if you dont have too? Your son will need to be very religious with his routine. You can be half way and still get results. Patti is right in that he needs to keep his skin and hair squeaky clean. Watch out with hair product too, because they can really clog the skin. He has to use stuff as directed and as far as cleansers, benzoyl peroxide wont penetrate the skin unless it is left on the skin one to two full minutes. Most typical people's washes take about 30 seconds so he needs to leave it on his face longer. That is a mistake a lot of people make when they try to use ProActive. Proactive is good but you DO HAVE to leave that cleanser on for at least 1-2 full minutes for it to penetrate. He may need help getting his back washed. I bought my son a back brush but make sure he isnt too rough with his scrubbing-it can make things worse if he is too vigorous. It sometimes takes a bit of trial and error to find something that works but it can be done! Good for you for researching that poison and question letting your son use it! I just wont take that chance with my son!!