What is wrong with my muscles after taking Accutane? Its been 3.5 months of severe back and hip and glute pain.

Question

I was taking Accutane for my acne. I stopped taking it because my muscle pain was to severe. My ribs are also killing me. Im not sure what to do. Is this muscle damage? All my muscle are aching. My spine is aching.

Daniel Navi, MD, FAAD · Answer

Less than 5% of patients taking isotretinoin (Accutane) can experience bone, join or muscle pain. While these side effect are not very common they are well-known and are reversible once isotretinoin is stopped. My general advice to patients experiencing these symptoms is to lower the dose of their isotretinoin and use acetominophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) to relieve symptoms. This usually helps resolve symptoms or make it tolerable. However, very rarely these types of symptoms while on isotretinoin can be secondary to more serious bone or muscle abnormalities and require more urgent work up including blood work to check for rhabdomyolysis (sever muscle inflammation/breakdown). If your symptoms are persisting despite stopping isotretinoin and taking pain-relievers then please see your dermatologist for further evaluation.

What is wrong with my muscles after taking Accutane? Its been 3.5 months of severe back and hip and glute pain.

Answers (1)

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