Lookinf 4 advice with forehead and scaly, flaking skin

04-20-2003, 11:35 AM

Hi everyone,

I'm a 30 year old male who has had acne (in mild to moderate form - mild now) over the past 10+ years. I have been on a myraid of products both OTC and prescription. I went on accutane to clear up a bad case of body acne in 2001, 40mg a day (average). Cleared me up very well on body (+anything on face), still occassionally get breakouts (whiteheads/small red pustules) on chest/back though. I've been using head and shoulders (per a suggestion I saw on this board) and it's working better, I feel, than the salicylic acid treatments (Neutrogena Body Wash). Fingers crossed on that...

My problem however is my facial skin, really my forehead/temples. After accutane, I got oily again (although not as much) and began to get breakouts on my face that I wanted to clear up (they were more noticeable and annoying to me than anyone else). Facial cleansers seemed to make things worse, and so I tried low dose b5 to control oil (1mg a day). While b5 seemed to do a good job, I did not like the way I felt on it and so I discontinued use. My forehead and temples have exploded in small red pimples/whiteheads, everywhere it seems. Not to mention it is scaly and flaky. I know I brought a little bit on this myself by perhaps trying too many things in an effort to maintain the nice glow I had w/accutane, but the fact is it didn't end the breakouts totally. My derm prescribed differn after accutane as a way to keep the whiteheads away, but my skin is very sensitive and just a few applications made me so dry and tight, and my skin I felt was not at the point where a retinol was needed.

I'm thinking now of doing nothing, just washing with cool water for a few weeks to get my skin back to some normal ph balance. Or maybe someone has experience with this type of problem/skin redness/flakiness and breakouts on temples and forehead, and could suggest a cleanser or treatment that cleared them up (I'm a bit impatient!)? I refuse to use Cetaphil as it aggravated the situation and any really harsh cleanser (salicylic acid) as it only makes me flaky and dry with more spots. Any advice out there?

Sorry for the length and thanks in advance.

Ro

04-20-2003, 11:54 AM

usualy flakiness on the skin is due to something topical. perhaps you are using something that dehydrates you. soap is the biggest offender, it dehydrates , strips the acid mantle and causes the skin to produce more oil to replace the water loss. more oil = breakouts and clogging. you should try a creamy cleanser (alba botanica citrus cleanser is a good one) and an oil- free moisturizer.

04-20-2003, 06:55 PM

i have dry flaky skin beacuse of the stuff i put on my face dries it out! I would suggest a moisterizer! Make sure its oil free and dosent clog ur pores!

04-21-2003, 05:43 AM

I too suffer with acne prone skin that is oily but can be very dry and flaky once the oil is removed.
I think you may have a condition called sebhoroeic dermatitis like myself.
This is an overgrowth of yeast on the skin.
This overgrowth happens because the natural yeasts that live on all of our skins feed on the overproduction of sebum, thus leading to redness and flakiness.
It’s really hard to treat because acne products make the dermatitis worse and products to help the dermatitis usually make the acne worse.
Anyway this is my current routine and it seems to be controlling both problems at the moment, although I still do have breakouts from time to time and no doubt always will do.
I cleanse my face 2 or 3 times daily with a gentle facial wipe that does not contain alcohol, this way I am not using water on my skin as I think this can dry it out too.
To treat the acne I apply Benzoyl Peroxide Cream 5% nightly only, using 10% makes my skin flake like mad, if you have tried 5% in the past and it has been too harsh try 2.5% instead.
An hour after applying the Benzoyl Peroxide I moisturize my skin with Thursday Plantation Tea Tree Oil Moisturizer this is non greasy and contains Tea Tree Oil, Witch Hazel, Aloe Vera and Almond Oil all of which are good for irritated skin.
You can buy this online.
When I have a major breakout of redness and flakiness I use Daktacourt Cream this is a cream containing Hydrocortisone 1%, which is a topical steroid and Micanazole 2% which is an Antifungal cream.
I hope this may be of some help to you, it’s not a cure but it does give you some relief.
Currently I am trying B5 too, hopefully to reduce my oiliness..

04-21-2003, 06:42 AM

Thanks to all for the replies.

DameC, I agree that overcleansing is a culprit, which is why I am simply splashing my face with cool water now. Seems to have calmed things down. I'll look into that cleanser you mentioned, thanks!

Scouselad, I've read several of your posts on seb. dermatitis and I've wondered whether that is what is going on. Certainly sounds like my skin type nowadays. Considering how the H&S is helping my chest/back, I've considered using it on my face as well (haven't done so yet, for fear it would make it worse). Maybe I should make an appt with my derm again to discuss this (not something I look forward to, since I thought those days were behind me). How many mgs of B5 are you taking and which brand?

Lookinf 4 advice with forehead and scaly, flaking skin

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