accutane and ms??? - Multiple Sclerosis Message Board

Richard12 · 11-16-2008, 02:22 PM

hey everybody has anyone heard or have been on accutane and have ms??i got horriable acne and severe to..i was wondering have any of yall been on accutane?? if so tell me yalls stories and did it affect your ms?thanks!

MSNik · 11-16-2008, 06:08 PM

it would be a horribly bad mistake to be on Accutane with MS IF YOU ARE TAKING ANY DMDs.
Because the DMDs might affect your white blood count and defintatly can affect your liver, and because Accutane is virtually poisinous to the liver, you cant be on Accutane and an interferon...I am not entirely sure about Copaxone.

if you are not taking any DMDs- I would still avoid Accutane, it can only increaese your autoimmune system and hurt your MS symtpoms. I was on Accutane for 9 months a few years before I got dx....they think its what brougth out my symtoms as I repeated it 8 months before my dx yet again. Accutane did NOTHING for me except make me want to die...its a horrible depressent, please talk to your doctor at length before thinking of taking it.

Richard12 · 11-16-2008, 08:47 PM

dang! that seems scary thanks for replying! ya i was on accutane back in june of 07 until jan 08 and then thats crazy after that got ms! im scared but it worked so magically! like my face was clear until stupid predisone whitch made me ugly lol

MSNik · 11-17-2008, 07:02 AM

Richard, as a fellow accutane user and acne sufferer; I can only say that I have every reason to think Accutane brought on my symptoms and is really dangerous to use....for everyone Ive ever known, one year off of Accutane has brought back both acne and a host of other symptoms, previously not seen.
I think its dangerous, but that is only my opinion. On the acne board here, you will find others with stories about Accutane- some good, some not so good; however keep in mind that those people do not also suffer from MS.

You didnt say whether or not you are taking any drugs for MS....if you are, that would probably nix the the whole idea of Accutane by your neuro...but if you arent, it would be your choice.

i would talk to my neuro at length...if he isnt aware of the side efects of accutane, have him give your derm a call.....or ask your derm to talk to your neuro- either way, this is potentially not a good idea and i would gather all the facts first.

good luck to you, and remember, steroids only affect you for about a month- all the side effects, including the breakouts, should stop.

amy2705 · 11-20-2008, 09:50 PM

I took accutane about 10 years ago. And I haven't had acne since (hurrah!). So I have to say that I've had a pretty good accutane experience. I was diagnosed with MS about 2.5 years ago. No one ever mentioned any connection to the accutane ... so who knows!

In any case, Niki is 100% right, you can't take accutane if you're taking interferon (avonex, etc) as BOTH affect your liver. It's one or the other - sorry to say.

As a total aside, have you ever tried minocin (minocycline) for the acne? There was recently a study done at the University of Calgary about minocin (a typical acne drug) being used to reduce lesion imaging in MS patients. Might be worth looking into if it has the potential to help both acne and MS!