Isotretinoin is a drug that has been formulated with the specific purpose of treating severe cases of acne. Before Isotretinoin came onto the scene severe acne was usually treated with oral antibiotics but this method was limited in that it only partly addressed the factors that cause acne. Furthermore, as more resistant strains of acne causing bacteria develop, oral antibiotics are not able to work. In its various commercial forms Accutane, Roaccutane, Claravis — it is highly effective but it has provoked much debate over its safety. Isotretinoin is used only as a final resort; it is only prescribed after topical treatments (that is ones applied directly to the skin) and/or antibiotics have been tried. There are two reasons for this. One is that Isotretinoin is a very expensive medicine and other methods are cheap in comparison. The second is that Isotretinoin does cause certain side effects and to suffer at least some of the many side affects attributed to it is more likely than for the patient to suffer none.So what are the side effects? To be frank they are numerous and varied. The most commonly experienced are dryness of the skin, the lips and inside the nose. Many patients suffer from itchiness of the skin and often the skin becomes quite flaky. Nose bleeds are not uncommon and conjunctivitis is often experienced. To be fair these complaints, while annoying for the sufferer, can be controlled and easily treated and patients who have been experiencing especially severe acne for years would probably put up with these minor problems for a short while and these contraindications do desist after treatment with Isotretinoin has concluded.There are more serious side effects, however. They include cataracts, hepatitis, pancreatitis and even inflammatory bowel disease. Conditions such as alopecia and degenerative bone disease have been reported to continue long after the treatment has been discontinued.The most serious of the side effects attributed to Isotretinoin is that it is highly likely to cause birth defects if it is used during pregnancy. In Great Britain the drug can only be issued by a Doctor and in the United States a dermatologist must register any patient he or she wishes to prescribe the drug for, to a website run by the FDA. There is also a strict code that outlines how the drug is dispensed; there is a window of a few days starting from when the prescription is issued until it must have been collected. After this time, the prescription is cancelled Category:Home › Other • Pomegranates: A newly discovered superfood • Where did the joke why did the chicken cross the road come from and why is it funny? • Can mothers diagnosed with bipolar disorder make good parents? • Spiritual evolution of human consciousness • Tips for getting a college basketball scholarship • Living with Pseudotumor cerebri (PTC) • Caring for the caregiver • Technologys impact on society