Acne is one of the biggest problems for your appearance especially when it occurs on your face. Although some cases the acne can clear spontaneously, but in some people it can persist longer until adulthood. They will try every way to get rid of their acne. One of them is by asking for prescribed antibiotics. When you are looking for online or read from book, you may find information about minocycline for acne. If you have not enough time to go to see your doctor yourself, you can check here whether it is safe or not.
Does Minocycline Work for Acne?
Minocycline is one of antibiotic drugs which mostly prescribed to treat acne, especially moderate to severe acne. It has an anti-inflammatory agent that effectively kills acne bacteria. The drug also helps to reduce redness, swelling and tenderness.
Most of studies also showed that minocycline works faster than other antibiotics such as tetracycline or oxytetracycline. Generally, most of people experienced an improvement for their acne after taking minocycline, although no difference results than other antibiotics in the end.
Side Effects
However, minocycline use has been lessened because of serious safety concern. The side effect that brought by minocycline include vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, dizziness, spinning and the worst is including skin pigmentation. One of study even states that people who treated with minocycline has a greater risk to develop autoimmune syndrome (lupus-like), than people who take other antibiotics tetracycline or no treatment. It makes minocycline usually does not prescribed as the first-line use of acne treatment.
How to Take Minocycline for Acne?
Take a note that the guideline for using minocycline acne is only permitted under the prescribed of your doctor. Follow these instructions (still ensure to follow your doctor direction beforehand):
- Take this antibiotic orally for usually every 12 hours (1-2 hours after a meal). Drink it with a full glass of water unless your doctor asks you otherwise.
- You can take it with milk or food, if you stomach feel upset (ask your doctor permission beforehand).
- If you take the minocycline in form of capsules, ensure to swallow them whole before lying down for at least 10 minutes (don’t take it right before bedtime).
- If you are having any meals contain with aluminum, iron, calcium, zinc or magnesium beforehand, make sure you take the drug 2-3 hours later. It’s because the product will bind minocycline which prevent the absorption in your body.
- Every dosage or length of minocycline treatment is based only with your medical condition under your doctor prescription.
Conclusion
Minocycline is an oral antibiotic which effective to treat moderate to severe inflammatory acne vulgaris. However, the use has been lessened due to its safety concern while still no evidence to show a reliable superiority effect than other commonly-used therapies. Instead, if you consider take minocycline acne, make sure you have your professional healthcare prescription to use this drug. Because it may work for some people but give a really harm to others.
