Acne Treatment Must Be Used With Caution:
Minocycline induced autoimmune hepatitis and systemic lupus erythematosus-like syndrome. Offered for acne but can cause liver failure, tooth discolouration, autoimmune hepatitis and lupus

The dangers of Minocycline

Widely Prescribed:
Minocycline is an antibiotic widely prescribed for acne because it only has to be taken once or twice daily and does not cause drug resistance. In Great Britain, 800,000 prescriptions for minlcycline were filed in 1993. However, cases of severe reactions to minocycline have now been reported in Britain - two patients died and another needed a liver transplant. Sixteen cases of severe chronic hepatitis and 11 of induced systemic lupus erythematosus also occurred after use of the drug against acne.

This article is by the physicians who helped identify these illnesses as probable reactions to minocycline, and is a review of their data.

Acne itself is often associated with arthritis or autoimmune liver disease. However, when affected patients halted mincycline, their health returned to normal despite their worsening acne, suggesting a drug reaction as the reason for their illnesses

Illness:
In five cases, resumption of minocycline led to recurrence of illness. The severity of reactions means early recognition is important to treatment and recovery, especially to avoid treatment and recovery, especially to avoid treatments like corticosteroids and imminosuppressants for arthritis and lupus, as well as invasive investigations such as liver biopsy for hepatitis. The article concludes that safer alternatives to minocycline should be considered for treatment of acne.

A Gough, S Chapman, K Wagstaff, P Emery & E Elias BMJ 1996, 312:169-72

*The Sunday Times, Style Magazine, October 18, 1998