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Duac and Stinging: What Users Say

Stinging: mentioned by 9 users (3.2%)

Based on user experiences from 279 Duac reviews, the following table shows the most commonly mentioned side effects.

All user comments are moderated by Drugs.com. Each review is verified for relevance and screened for inappropriate content. Side effects are user-reported and not clinically verified.

dryness 24.0%
dry skin 18.3%
itching 17.6%
redness 14.3%
peeling 12.9%
burning 12.2%
acne 4.7%
pain 4.7%
allergic reaction 3.6%
stinging 3.2%

Reviews for Duac

Commonly mentioned side effects
  • Hhh...
  • October 15, 2013

For Acne "My doctor prescribed me this gel for my mild to many spots on my face and back. The first day I applied it, the next morning my face was almost clear of blackheads, and I had noticed an improvement, however, I decided to do what may have been a really foolish thing. I applied it on all of my cheeks and basically most of my face, the parts which rarely had spots on. I woke up the next day to a stinging, bright red face. My skin was so, so dry. It was patchy orange and red, it was half peeling, and it looked like I was wearing patchy foundation."

7 / 10
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25 Report
  • May...
  • July 3, 2018

For Acne "I started to get spots for 2 months. I tried everything to get rid of it, but nothing helped, and it got worse (I only had it on my forehead). The doctor gave me Duac, and at first, it didn't work, and then it went red and started to sting. It's now my 6th, and my acne has gone flat but is brown and peeling. I peeled some, and it's gone. I am so amazed by it, and I can't wait for my skin to get better, inshallah."

7 / 10
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10 Report
  • Ham...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • September 3, 2018

For Acne "I used this cream for 3 nights, and for the past 72 hours, my face has been red, extremely dry, very tight, and I’ve had a painful burning sensation, and my face can’t seem to cool down whatsoever. For the dryness, I tried a very small amount of moisturizer on an area of my face, and it just burned and stung more :("

1 / 10
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13 Report
  • mar...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 23, 2013

For Acne "I applied Duac on my face as instructed, and after 2 days of using it, I noticed that my pimples started to disappear, but the problem is my whole face got swollen, itchy, and red. I can't even sleep and go to school for days. So what I did is visit my doctor again, and he told me that those were the side effects of the product and told me to stop using it. To relieve the stinging and redness, I used an ice pack on my face and put moisturizer non-stop. Luckily, after a few days the swelling and redness disappeared. Thank God my acne disappeared, and since then, whenever pimples appear on my face, I just applied the gel directly on the pimples."

6 / 10
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13 Report
  • Jes...
  • January 21, 2014

For Acne "I've only been using this for 4 days so far. I put it all over my face because it says to use on the 'area' that is spot-prone, and all of my face gets spotty, though not at the same time. I have pretty sensitive skin anyway, but this stuff burns! And my face is red raw for the next 3 or 4 hours. I put it on in the evening, and by morning, I'm no longer red and stinging. It has also made me extremely dry and flaky and tight-skinned, which is to be expected, but I can't bear it, so I put on moisturizer almost immediately afterwards, which may be slowing down the process. It hasn't helped my acne yet, but I'm hoping with a little patience and pain tolerance it will do the job!"

3 / 10
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14 Report

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  • GBO...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • September 20, 2018

For Acne "Suffered from very bad cheek spots, no drug store face cleansers worked. Went to the doctors, and they prescribed me this - within 2 weeks, they were near enough gone. An absolute godsend, my confidence is back and my skin is clear. I get the odd breakout and reapply, and they're down within 2 days. It's so worth it. Stings for the first few days while skin gets used to it."

10 / 10
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5 Report
  • Sta...
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • June 14, 2016

For Acne "Tried this twice, have really bad hormonal acne and was prescribed this by my GP, completely dried my skin out and it hurt to use anything but simple face wash on it, stung and itched a lot and made my dermatitis so much worse. That was last year, gave up on prescribed treatments until 2 months ago, again was given Duac even after describing my first experience with it. Have used it for 6 weeks now, skin has adjusted to drying but has done nothing for my acne, still have as many breakouts if not worse."

2 / 10
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6 Report
  • Con...
  • July 4, 2016

For Acne "Very effective from the beginning! Although I came across a few side effects - redness, dryness, peeling of skin - this cream completely eliminated most of my acne. I particularly found it astonishing that over the space of a few months my cysts had decreased - in size - dramatically. They'd shrink and leak until they vanish, usually not leaving any scars, only marks - which will fade over a period of time. When my skin was feeling painful due to the side effects - stinging at night - I'd stop using Duac for a couple of days and moisturize up. Once the side effects decreased slightly, I'd go back on it. I took Duac alongside the antibiotic erythromycin - however, I didn't find that drug effective."

9 / 10
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5 Report
  • Sha...
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • August 25, 2021

For Acne "Here is my experience on Duac. I didn’t have bad acne while on this, I had a few spots here and there. While using this for 3 days, I saw a difference, but while on this cream longer, my face became very red, itchy, blotchy, and stinging. I called the doctor, and they said this was normal. I continued using this, and it’s made my skin, all in all, 100,000% worse than it’s ever, ever been. It’s made me break out in ridiculous acne, spots, and blackheads. I have more spots now using this than I did beforehand. I have now stopped using this for 3 weeks, and my skin is still worse than ever. Please, please, if you don’t have serious acne, then do not use this gel! It’s as if my skin is in a constant rash. Hope this helps you!"

2 / 10
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1 Report

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Reviews may be edited to correct grammar/spelling or remove inappropriate content. Reviews appearing to come from parties with a vested interest are not published. This information is not intended to endorse any medication and should not replace the expertise and judgment of healthcare professionals.