What is the Treatment that Some Experts are Calling a "Cure" for Acne?

In order to ‘cure’ acne a drug must aggressively address the root causes of the disease, and stop it in its path. Unfortunately there are so many contributing factors that cause acne, there is never going to be a single miracle cure that is able to address all of these causes. However there is a drug that statistically helps 60% of people treated with it, to effectively be cured from acne, and not require any further treatment.

This drug is called Isotretinoin (Roaccutane), and it works by stopping the driving forces behind acne – the excess production of sebum, and the building up of the ducts, which combine to cause blockages of the pores. The treatment is both very powerful, and at the same time causes a range of troublesome side-effects, including:

1) Extreme dryness of the skin

2) Extreme dryness of the soft mucous membranes such as inside the lips and eyelids

3) Muscle and joint pains

4) Acne can be worsened for the first 8 weeks of treatment

5) Foetal damage if the drug is taken during pregnancy

6) Elevated liver enzymes

Regular blood tests are required during the treatment, which generally lasts 4 months. This is a critical requirement of the treatment, and is part of the licensing of the use of this drug for acne, and should not be ignored. The blood tests will monitor liver enzymes which can be elevated by the use of the drug. This potential adverse effect on the liver may also preclude individuals that already have liver damage (for example from excessive alcohol abuse) from taking the drug.

This drug is very much a doubled edged sword, in that it is both very powerful, but has some serious downsides. It must only be taken under the close supervision of a specialist in this area, and the full implications should be spelt out, at the outset of the treatment. You should insist on a copy of the leaflet produced by the drug company, to make sure you fully understand all aspects of its use. This is not the sort of treatment you buy over the internet, and administer to yourself.